


The Long Road Home

by thequeenstolemyheart



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-03-01
Updated: 2015-01-21
Packaged: 2018-01-14 03:18:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 19
Words: 85,716
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1250761
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thequeenstolemyheart/pseuds/thequeenstolemyheart
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Set after the winter finale. When another curse is cast Hook, Emma and Henry set out to break it, but when they get to Storybrook they find Regina's life is not what they expected it to be. Will flash back and forth between FTL and Present day. Outlaw Queen (main ship) and bits of Captain Swan.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> The beginning of this fic will flash back and forth from FTL to tell the stories of those that went back and then you will see the present day starting with the end of the last episode. This is mainly going to focus on the characters of Regina and Emma at first, but will become an Outlaw Queen fic eventually. It will end up being Captian Swan for Emma, but that is going to be a secondary ship as it will mostly focus on OQ.

Enchanted Forest 6 Months Ago:

Six months. It had been six moths since they'd arrived back in the place that Regina would honestly rather have forgotten forever. This had been the place where her life had taken a horrific turn. Growing up she'd hated magic and swore that she would never become the monster that her mother was. Regina still had trouble figuring out how exactly she'd become what she feared the most.

She knew how of course…magic. Along with years of bottled up rage and no one to blame it on except the step daughter she'd once loved, but later despised. Her anger and rage had only grown as she continued along in her magical training. Learning magic had changed something inside of her and as she changed her heart grew darker.

Everything changed though after she cast the curse.

Not at first. No, at first she'd been the same woman she'd been so many years ago, the only difference was that in that world she didn't have magic which was honestly a relief. Even though her heart was still dark in the beginnings of the curse she did feel lighter…free might be a better word. Magic was like a drug and when it was available she had needed it, but when it wasn't there she was free from it's curse.

The moment when things had changed for her was the day that she adopted her son. Her sweet little prince. Henry was the first person who loved her…truly loved her since her father and she had loved him back. He'd become her entire world.

She'd made mistakes as a mother, many mistakes. Looking back now that she had a clear head and no longer deluding herself that her acts had been justified she could see that. For most of Henry's childhood they had been happy and carefree. It wasn't until he began to notice that nothing around him was changing that their problems had truly begun.

When Henry had been nine years old he'd asked her about his father. Regina thought that would be a good time to tell him about his adoption. Surprisingly despite her nerves he had taken the news that he was adopted very well. He'd looked to be in deep thought for a moment and had then given her a grin.

"So you mean you chose me? It wasn't like you got pregnant and I was what you got…you actually saw me and decided you wanted me?" He'd asked her.

Regina smiled and told him that from the moment she laid eyes on him she'd fallen in love with him. Henry had grinned and wrapped his arms around her neck telling her that he was the luckiest boy in the world because he had her for a Mom.

Six months later he began to pull away from her. She'd thought at first it was a sort of residual effect of finding out he was adopted and decided to put him in therapy sessions with Archie to help him work through it. She hadn't found out until Emma Swan came into town that he'd noticed that the town never changed and about the storybook that started it all.

She'd lost her son when he was given that book. She'd been so hurt…devastated really when he'd turned his back on her. She remembered wondering if the first ten years of his life really meant nothing to him. She wondered how the person she loved more then anything else in the world could really not love her back. She'd given him her whole heart and he hadn't wanted it.

It was Emma Swan who'd given her the first taste of hope that Henry really did love her. When he'd asked Emma not to let anyone hurt her she'd been given the hope that maybe he didn't hate her.

It had turned out to be true and after getting him back from Neverland Regina had truly thought for a moment that she may get her happy ending.

It had all been ruined by Pan's curse and to save everyone in the town and prevent Henry from being alone she'd had to let him go…with Emma. The hardest thing she'd ever done in her life was watch him drive away in that blasted yellow bug.

Now neither he nor Emma knew anything about their pasts. He no longer remembered her. The thought of that broke Regina's heart, but also strangely comforted her. It broke her heart because he would never know again how much she loves him. He would never know that somewhere in another world there was someone who loved him more then anything. It comforted her for those same reasons. He would never miss her or the people he'd had to leave behind. He would never be kept awake at night as she was wondering if maybe he'd done something different things wouldn't have turned out this way.

No this way he could be a kid…a happy kid. She knew that he was happy because she'd been the one to give he and Emma their memories.

She'd given them her memories. Her memories of his first step, his first day of school, the first time he'd rode a bike, his fifth birthday when he got the Spiderman costume that he refused to take off for nearly a week. They were her memories of their life together but now she was replaced with Emma. It tore her heart in two, but also strangely made her feel as if he still had a part of her with him. As if somehow they were still connected.

That was comforting.

The day they'd arrived in the Enchanted Forest she'd looked around just wondering what would come next. She supposed the thing to do would be to go back to her castle until she was told it had been taken over by a sorceress.

It wasn't that Regina couldn't handle the free loader who'd taken over her old kingdom, but truly she just didn't have any fight left in her. It had all drained away the moment her son drove across the town line. What was the point of fighting for something if you wouldn't be happy when you got it? She would never be happy without her little boy so why keep fighting?

Surprisingly enough the hate and anger was gone as well. She'd realized that where she was and the position she was in was of her own doing and as she'd told Henry before he drove away villains don't get happy endings.

He'd told her she wasn't a villain, but his Mom. She would hold onto those words for the rest of her life.

It was Snow who had made the suggestion she move into the castle with them. Everyone around the woman had looked at her as if she'd grown another head including Regina herself. The last thing she wanted was to live with Snow White again, but Snow had made a valid argument that the sorceress who lived in Regina's old castle was rumored to be very powerful. It would be to everyone's benefit for Regina to be with them incase at any point the woman decided to attack.

Regina had scoffed at first thinking how much of an idiot this woman really was and very nearly saying so until she'd heard Henry's voice in her head pleading with her to please take care of them…to help them.

If the fact that Regina was living here now wasn't proof that she loved her son she didn't know what would be.

It honestly wasn't that horrible. She had her own wing in the palace and for the most part kept to herself except for the dreaded royal council meetings that were held once a week. The sorceress in the castle had caused a fair amount of trouble, nothing yet in this kingdom, but it did warrant keeping an eye on her. Snow and David had made alliances with some of the people who had been left in this world and they were now trying to get back to some sense of normal.

Her only visitors in her wing of the castle were Snow, Neal, Belle and Tinkerbell. They all came to her for different reasons. Snow often came to check on her. Regina could see that the woman was sincere in her worry and she supposed she appreciated it. It was truly amazing that after everything she'd done the woman could still care about her. Regina also suspected that Snow now felt a connection with her. After all they had both recently lost a child and could relate to each other in that aspect. Regina never shared her feelings about loosing Henry with her former step daughter but she didn't object when Snow wanted to talk about Emma.

Neal had come to her room after about a month of being back. She'd been shocked to see him, but quickly found out that he wanted to know about Henry. After all he'd missed his whole life and even though he would never see him again he wanted to at least feel like he knew him. She hadn't wanted to talk to him at first, but again she'd heard that Henry like voice in her head asking her to please be there for him. So reluctantly she'd began telling him about Henry's childhood. She'd actually come to enjoy his visits above anyone else's because she loved talking about Henry. She loved remembering a time when she was truly happy and believed she had everything. She loved remembering her baby boy's smile and the feel of him in her arms. It gave her something she could focus on and be proud of. Of all the things she'd done wrong she'd raised a wonderful little boy.

Belle occasionally came to visit as well. Regina still couldn't figure out why. Truthfully she thought that the woman sometimes just got lonely and needed to feel as if she were doing something useful. What better charity project then the Evil Queen? That wasn't really fair though. In all of her visits Belle had never made her feel less then anyone else. She supposed that if Belle could see the good in the Dark One then perhaps she saw it in her too. She'd offered her a sort of friendship and although Regina had no interest in being anyone's friend she couldn't really say that she minded having the girl around. It was something to break up her boring and often lonely days.

Tinkerbell was probably the closet thing to a friend Regina had. She was the only one that Regina would let see her when she was having a hard time. She didn't share all of her feelings with the woman by any means, but she did share snippets. Sometimes it felt nice just to talk to someone.

She gently moved her pencil over the paper on her desk and didn't even glance up when she heard the light knock on the door.

"Regina?" she heard Snow's voice call from the other side. "Can I come in?"

Regina sighed. "If you must." She answered still not looking up from her drawing.

She heard the door open and Snow's soft footsteps towards her. She could feel the woman looking over her shoulder.

"It looks just like him." Snow told her looking at the picture she had drawn.

Regina just shook her head. She gently touched the paper on her desk. "The eyes aren't right." She told her. "They don't have that spark the way Henry's do."

Snow looked at the woman who stared sadly at the picture of her son. They hadn't even had time to save a photograph of their lost children. It was almost as if they never existed at all…except in their minds.

"I wanted to see if you would like to come to dinner tonight." Snow asked her as she did nearly every night.

Regina laid her pencil down and looked up at Snow for the first time since she entered the room. Snow had found out not long after coming back that she was pregnant again and her belly had started to round. Her face had grown a bit fuller and she truly did have the glow of a pregnant woman. "No thank you, I'll take it in my room."

Snow let out a sigh. "Regina, I really wish you would get out more. It isn't healthy to sit in here in the dark all day."

Regina huffed at the same conversation. "Dear, I do not sit in here all day, I go outside quite often." she gestured to the open curtains "And as you can see I'm not in the dark."

"But you never go around people Regina. You need to get out of your solitude." Snow sighed and rubbed her belly lightly. "This isn't what Henry would want for you."

Regina's eyes snapped back up to Snow's and for a moment she could see the fire that had once been there. "Henry wouldn't want anything for me Snow because Henry doesn't know that I exist. I now mean no more to him then a stranger he meets on the street."

"You know what I mean Regina." Snow huffed. This woman could be so infuriating. "Are you going to make me say it?!"

"Say what dear?" Regina raised a brow.

"I'm worried about you Regina! I…" She paused for a moment. "I don't want this for you either." She laid a hand on the woman's arm. "I want you to be happy."

Regina glanced down at her hand for a moment before looking back up into Snow's eyes. "Happiness isn't meant for me Snow. I appreciate the concern." She briefly laid her hand on the other woman's "Really I do, but it isn't necessary. I'm not falling apart or descending into an evil dark place, I have simply accepted my fate and this is it. I'm not meant to be happy."

Snow sighed wishing there was something she could do to get her out of the dark place she was in. "Regina…"

"You really should stop worrying dear." Regina patted her hand before standing and walking towards the window. "It's not good for the baby."

Snow looked at the woman's back for a moment before her lips turned up slightly. "Be careful Regina, someone may actually start to think you care."

Regina looked back at Snow and studied her for a long moment causing Snow to fidget a bit under then intense glare. "I care because Henry would."

Snow swallowed when she saw the pain reflected in the other woman's eyes. Despite their pasts she wished there was something she could do to help Regina now. Yes she and Regina had a horrible relationship for a very long time, but even Snow could see that her relationship with Henry had changed her former step mother. The woman had given up everything to fix Pan's curse and in doing so had actually given her daughter and grandson their happy ending despite the fact that neither would remember any of them.

It kind of broke Snow's heart a bit that the one person Regina had loved, the one person she'd allowed in and cared for for ten years of his life didn't even know she existed. He was the one person that could testify that there was more to Regina then an Evil Queen who had cast a curse on an entire land. Snow could testify to that too considering that she was the only one who had known Regina before she'd been corrupted by magic, but Regina didn't want her help to attempt to get others to see the good in her. Regina couldn't care less what the people of the kingdom thought of her now. The only people she tolerated visits from was herself, Neal, Belle and Tinkerbell, but it wasn't as if she'd allowed any of them to see inside of her. She had secluded herself in her own world where Snow was honestly afraid that she would stay for the rest of her life.

At least she'd agreed to help them against the sorceress that had taken over Regina's former home. Snow felt that at least that was giving the woman some sense of purpose. Perhaps if she had something to fight for or someone to stand up to it would help bring her out of the dark place she was in.

Snow sighed. "I will have your dinner brought to your room." She lifted a hand to Regina's shoulder and ignored when she felt the woman stiffen a bit. "I'll be back to see you tomorrow."

Regina simply nodded and waited until she heard the door shut. She'd found out several months ago that telling Snow not to bother with her daily visits was a waste of breath. The good and pure Snow White had made it her mission in life to try and help the Evil Queen. It truly amazed her how completely naïve the girl could be. She would never stop trying to help people (even the ones who didn't want it like herself) It was just who she was and somehow over the last months Regina had come to accept that.

The hatred she once felt for her former step daughter was no longer there. Annoyance yes, but not hatred. She just didn't have the energy to hate her anymore and honestly finally letting that go had been a relief. She'd really done her best to be civil to the woman in honor of Henry. She knew that he would want more then anything for her to no longer hate Snow White with every fiber of her being.

The truth was she would still do anything for her son…even if he didn't have the first clue who she was.

She sighed as she heard the door open again but continued to stare out her window.

"Snow while I appreciate the offer of having dinner with every fairy tale character in history I would rather not." She stated.

When she received no answer from the insufferable woman she turned only to find a small boy standing in her doorway.

The boy studied her for a moment before speaking. "Can you help me find my Daddy?"

Regina simply stared at the boy for a moment…just for a moment when she'd caught sight of the boy from the corner of her eye before seeing him fully her heart had leapt. She'd been reminded of when Henry was this small and would come in to see her in her room.

"How did you end up down here?" She asked. Her voice still wasn't quite steady. God, she missed her son.

"Daddy was talking to a man and I thought it would be funny if I played hide and seek from him, but then I couldn't find my way back." He looked at her with big dark eyes that looked as if they could overflow with tears at any moment.

She'd seen him before but had never talked with him. He was the son of that bandit, Robin Hood. The man sat in on all of the council meetings. He seemed to be the one person who had information on the mysterious sorceress. In his travels he'd heard several rumors about the woman and his information seemed to be quite helpful. Regina wasn't fond of the man himself. He was arrogant and cocky and quite frankly if it wasn't for the fact that he was helpful with his intelligence on the witch who now lived in her castle she would have written him off completely.

"And does your father know he is supposed to be seeking you?" She asked him.

The boy shook his head slowly the first tear falling down his cheek. "I think he might be mad that he can't find me."

Regina looked at him for another moment. The tear rolling down his cheek touched something in her heart. "I doubt mad would be the right word, I would say worried would be a better one." She knelt down so she could look the boy in the eyes. "It isn't safe to run off and not tell anyone where you're going."

The boy nodded. "I'm sorry." Another tear fell.

Regina gave him a slight smile and reached her hand up to wipe the tear from his face. "I think it would be a good idea to get you back to him before he calls out the royal guard don't you?" She asked the boy.

He nodded again. "You'll help me find him?"

She smiled at him fully. "I will." She stood up and took his hand. "I've seen you around the castle but I'm sorry to say that I don't know your name."

The boy smiled up at her tears forgotten now that he was on his way back to his father. "I'm Roland." He told her. "What's your name?"

She smiled back at him. "Regina." She told him as they walked down the hallway towards the courtyard.

The boy smiled again. "Your name starts with an R like mine!" he pointed out.

Regina chuckled at the boys enthusiasm. "It does. So I assume you know your ABC's?"

The boy nodded. "Daddy has been teaching me. I still don't know all the sounds that letters make, but I know R because it's what my name starts with. Daddy's name does too!"

Regina nodded. "How old are you Roland?"

"I just turned five last week." He grinned proudly. "Daddy says I'm growing up to fast."

Regina smiled. She remembered that feeling. Every time Henry had another birthday she would find herself wondering where the time had gone. "Kids do grow up fast." She stated.

"Do you have any kids?" He wanted to know.

She gave him a sad smile. "I do…a son, but he isn't with me anymore."

The boy studied her as they walked side by side. "Why not? Where is he?"

"He's in another world, I had to let him go so that he would be safe and happy." She shared with the five year old.

"That's sad. I bet he misses you." The boy told her.

Regina felt a pang in her heart but only nodded as they walked into the courtyard. She spotted the man immediately. He hadn't yet seen them but she could see the panic on his face as he searched behind hedges calling for his son. She knew that feeling as well. Henry had hidden from her when they'd gone to the park one afternoon when he wasn't much older then Roland. She'd turned around for what seemed like half a second and when she'd turned back he was gone. He'd had very much the same idea as Roland, thinking it would be a funny trick to play on Mommy, but the shear panic that Regina had felt as she searched for her little boy thinking up all the horrors that could happen to him when he was all alone she would never forget.

"Here I am Daddy!" The boy stated still holding on to Regina's hand and waving with his other one.

The man looked their way and instantly Regina saw the relief cross his face. He was across the court yard in less then three seconds before he plucked his son off the ground and held on to him as if his life depended on it.

"Jesus Roland you nearly gave me a heart attack." He held his son close to him. "Why didn't you answer when I called for you?" He asked. "Where were you?"

The boy pulled back and looked at Robin with wide eyes. "I'm sorry Daddy. I thought it would be fun to play hide and seek, but then I went down a hallway and couldn't find my way back." He told his father. "But then Regina found me and brought me back to you."

Robin looked at the woman for the first time. She was wearing a somewhat simple black dress (simple in that the clothes the woman had worn before the curse struck were rumored to be much more extravagant.) The dress was a velvet material with a silver border around the neckline, a neckline that rode low on her chest. Not too low, but low enough that you could certainly appreciate the view. It was tight around her waist but flowed out at the hips and down to the floor.

"Thank you." He told her. He hadn't been sure about trusting this woman at first, but after David had told him of the things she had done to save the people of the kingdom from destruction he felt better about her. Apparently she'd given up her son…not only given him up but given him happy memories with his birth mother.

Robin wasn't sure that he could have done the same. What hell it must be to have to say goodbye to your child.

She gave him a slight smile. "You're welcome."

"Are you mad?" The little boy asked.

Robin looked back at his son with such relief on his face. "I'm not mad buddy, but you know better then to go running off without telling me where you are going. I was very worried something bad may have happened to you."

Roland poked out his lip a little. "I'm sorry Daddy. I just wanted to play hide and seek."

"It would appear that you hid yourself so well that you didn't even know where you were." Regina couldn't resist lightening the moment a bit. This kid had quite the pout.

Robin chuckled a bit at her comment. "You certainly did."

Roland grinned and looked at Regina. "You found me though!"

She smiled back at him. "I did." She looked back at Robin for a moment before turning her attention back to the little boy. "I really should be getting back. My dinner will be delivered soon."

Robin nodded. That was why he never saw her at dinner. Did she dine alone every night? "Thank you again for bringing him back. Sorry if he interrupted whatever it was you were doing."

What ever it was she was doing? Staring out the window wishing that her life could have turned out differently. Wishing that for once she could keep the people she loved most close to her. She couldn't say she minded a break from that daily activity. "It wasn't a problem." She smiled at Roland. "Your boy here is quite the charmer."

Robin grinned and bounced Roland a bit on his hip. "He is that." He smiled.

She nodded. "Goodnight Roland. Perhaps we will meet again sometime…" she leaned in and said in a whisper. "Next time lets just make sure your father knows where you are first."

The boy smiled. "Ok."

Regina turned to walk back towards her room. Being around a child reminded her so much of Henry. She wondered what he was doing…if he was happy. How she desperately wished there were a way back to that world, but short of casting another curse there wasn't. Even if she wanted to cast a curse (which she didn't) it would be impossible. To cast the curse you had to sacrifice the heart of the thing you love most and there was no one left.

XXXXXXXX

New York Present Day

Emma walked back towards her apartment after dropping Henry at the bus stop. It had been a strange morning. It wasn't everyday that a strange man with a hook for a hand showed up at her doorway claiming to know her. He'd kissed her rambling something about how he thought that it might work.

What the hell?!

Well she supposed there were crazy people everywhere, but this guy went past crazy right into being a complete and total lunatic.

He'd said her family was in danger. What the hell did that even mean? She had no family except for Henry and he was perfectly safe. She'd been sure to walk him to his bus stop this morning worried that the crazy man may show up again. Henry had whined that he was to old for his Mommy to be walking him to the bus stop and said all the kids would make fun of him, but she hadn't let up. She was still somewhat shaken about the strange events of the morning. Luckily the man had gone away and the walk to the bus stop had been uneventful.

The breeze was chilly but Emma didn't mind. It cleared her head and she was finally beginning to feel calm again, that is until she turned the corner and saw the man in question standing at the door to her building.

He began speaking the minute she spotted him. "Emma, I'm sorry about this morning but…"

"Look creep" she interrupted him. "I told you to go away. This is your last warning, if I see your face around here one more time I'm calling the cops and you can talk your crazy to them."

"Emma, please…I just need you to listen to me for five minutes, I promise I will leave you alone if you give me five minutes." The man pleaded with her.

Emma let out a huff. He was a persistent psycho she would give him that. "How the hell do you even know who I am?" She wanted to know.

"I told you we knew each other before…in another life I guess you could say." He told her.

Emma rolled her eyes. "The only life I have lived is this one and I have never seen you before."

"That you remember." Hook told her. "Your family is in danger Emma and you are the only one that can save them. They need you, please just listen to me."

"I don't have any family." She told him. "Look you obviously have the wrong person so why don't you just go away and find the right one."

"Not until you take this." The man pulled out a rather large book from his bag and held it out to her.

Emma glanced down at it making no move to take it. The book was old and tattered. The gold title on it read Once Upon a Time. "And what the hell would I want with some fairy tale book."

"It isn't just some fairy tale book Emma, It's the story of your life…You and Henry" He told her.

"Ok that's it! You are creeping me out! How in the hell do you know my son's name?!" she raised her voice at him.

"I told you, we knew each other once." He sighed continuing to hold the book out to her. "Look I know all this sounds crazy, but if you take this book…if you read it you will remember."

"You're out of your mind." She told him shaking her head and walking toward the door of her building. "I'm calling the police."

"Just take the book Emma…take it and read it and I will leave you alone." The man held it out to her. "I promise."

"I take that stupid book and I will never see you again." She asked with a raised eyebrow.

He gave her a cocky grin that for some reason infuriated her all the more. "Not unless you want to." He told her.

"Well I think it's safe to say that won't happen." She returned.

The man shrugged. "Then you have nothing to worry about taking this book."

Emma reached out hesitantly but finally decided to give in. She closed her fingers around the book and when she did she felt a strange sensation in her hand… a sort of tingling.

She shook off the strange feeling. Obviously this lunatic had her imagination working overtime. "Ok she said as she held the book at her side. I took it, now get lost."

The man smirked again. "When you do decide you want to talk to me I left a note inside the book where you will be able to find me."

Emma returned his smirk. "Well I'm sorry you wasted all that time writing down your info because I can promise you that you won't be hearing from me."

"We'll see." The man told her. "Have a good day Emma."

Instead of answering Emma turned and walked back through the door of her apartment. She took the elevator to the third floor and pulled out her keys. When she pushed the door open to her apartment she turned and locked the dead bolt just in case the man decided to come back. She looked down at the book in her hands that he had convinced her to take. Why in the hell would anyone want to give her a storybook?

Well he was obviously crazy and he did have a hook for a hand. She smirked to herself. "Probably thinks he's Captain Hook."

She threw the book on the table where it landed with a thud.

"Creep." she said again walking towards her computer to get a little work done.

XXXXXXXX

"Hey Mom." She heard her son call out when he walked through the door.

"Hey kid, I'm just finishing up here." She called back from her computer. "You hungry?" She asked knowing that was a stupid question. These days he was always hungry.

The boy shrugged. "I could eat." He told her as he dumped his backpack on the table. "What's this?" He asked gesturing to the book she'd thrown there earlier.

She'd nearly forgotten about her crazy visitor from this morning. "Oh, that's just a book some crazy guy wanted me to take."

Henry sat down at the table looking at it with interest. Her son loved to read. She often wondered where he'd gotten that trait. Emma had never been much of reader. It wasn't that she didn't enjoy it, it was just that she really didn't have the time or patience to do much of it.

"It looks like some kind of fairy tale book." he said as he opened it and flipped through the pages. He looked at it for a few moments. He stopped at a picture of Snow White eating the apple while standing next to the Evil Queen. "But in this one it's like all the characters are mixed together in one big story." He flipped another page and saw a picture of a town called Storybrook. "And it looks like they are in modern times." He said with some excitement.

Emma raised her eyebrow as she brought a sandwich to the table. "Well at least someone's going to get some enjoyment out of that ratty old thing." She smiled at him affectionately. "I should have known you would like it."

Henry looked up and smiled as she laid his sandwich down. "Thanks Mom." He told her as he went back to flipping through the book. The last page drew his attention. "Hey that looks like our bug." he told her pointing at the picture of the car that looked to be parked on the town line.

Emma glanced over his shoulder to look at the picture. "It does doesn't it?" She felt an eerie since of déjà vu.

Henry flipped yet another page to see the face of a woman surrounded by a purple mist. It was the same woman who'd been in the former pictures of the Evil Queen except in this picture she was saving the town. She had a tear rolling down her cheek. Her face seemed familiar for some reason. Almost as if he had seen her before but he couldn't place where it had been. He read the words on the page that talked of how the Queen Regina had given up the only person she loved to save the towns people from ruin. To save him from being cursed.

Henry furrowed his brow and moved his hand over the picture of the woman. He touched her face gently and that was when it happened. Image after image began to flash into his mind. His first day of school when he'd ran out of the classroom and leapt into his mothers arms. The woman he leapt to had been his blonde mother, but when he pulled back to smile at her he saw the brunette's face. His ninth birthday party when he'd begged for an xbox. It was his blonde mother's face who gave it to him, but when he looked back up from the box it was the brunette smiling at him. All the images that flashed through his head from his childhood started with the memories that he knew with his Mom, but were then replaced with the brunette woman that stared up at him from the page of the book.

Then came the devastated face of the woman we he screamed at her outside of their house that he'd found his real mom. Her heart broken face when she realized she'd finally gotten him back after the trip to Neverland, but would have to lose him again. The tear that rolled down her face when he told her she wasn't a villain, but his Mom.

Henry could hear someone calling his name in panic before he snapped out of the collage of pictures of his past. "Mom!" He gasped.

"Henry…Jesus. I'm right here. Are you ok? Don't try to move I'm gonna call an ambulance." Emma told him.

"No! Wait!" He told her as he looked around disoriented. How had he ended up on the floor? "I'm ok."

"Henry your not ok, you passed out!" Emma told him.

"No…Mom…I'm fine…I remember." He told her looking at her with wide eyes.

"Remember? Remember what Henry?" She shook her head and knelt beside him as he tried to stand. "I told you not to move, I don't want that to happen again."

"It won't because I remember now." He told her as he stood up.

Remember? What the hell was he talking about? He must have had some kind of hallucination when he passed out. "Henry. I am taking you to the hospital."

"No." he told her again. "I don't need the hospital…it's the book Mom…I remember. You have to look at it!"

The book. Emma glanced frantically to the table. That crazy man had done something to the book. He'd put something on it that caused her son to pass out and hallucinate. She would find that asshole and kill him.

"It's real!" Henry told her. "All of it! We've just forgotten. You have to look at the book Mom! Please!" Henry pleaded and reached for it again.

"Henry no! Don't touch that thing." She said pulling her son back. "That crazy man has done something to it. I'm calling the police."

"No Mom, you can't! You have to look at it!" Henry looked at her with pleading eyes. "You have to remember."

"Remember what Henry?" She asked exasperated.

"Our lives. Your parents…my Mom." He told her.

"Henry I'm your Mom." She shook her head. "And I don't have parents, they gave me up remember."

"My other Mom." Henry corrected. "And your parents gave you up to save you from the curse. We lived in this town…Storybrook. It's where our families are."

Her son sounded as if he'd completely lost his mind. She blinked at him. It was strange but what he was saying seemed to resonate though. As if deep down it didn't sound completely bat shit. "You don't have another Mom, Henry, You've been with me since birth…trust me. I remember."

Henry shook his head. "You only remember because she gave you her memories…please. Just look at the book."

Emma shook her head looking at the book on the table. It would be crazy to pick that thing up again especially since it seemed to give her son strange delusions but there was something about it…something about what Henry was saying.

She moved towards it almost afraid to touch it again. She looked at the page that still laid open on the table. She saw the woman with the tear rolling down her face and in the background she could make out the forms of a man and a woman who did look familiar. Their faces seemed to call to her form the recesses of her mind. Where had she seen these people before?

She stepped closer and upon inspection saw another face in the background. This one she knew without a doubt.

"Neal?" She looked at the man standing behind the brunette.

"My dad." Henry answered her.

Her head snapped up to her son. "How do you know that?" She asked him. She'd never told him about his father, the man who had left her to rot in prison.

"Because I've met him…I've met all of them. They're our family." He told her.

Emma looked at the faces of the people on the page and in the far corner she saw the face of them man who'd shown up on her door step that morning. The man who'd given her this book. Had he somehow been stalking her for her whole life? How could he know about Neal and why would he put him in this book.

"It's real Mom." Henry told her from beside her.

She shook her head as she sat down in the chair in front of the book. "That's impossible Henry."

She stared at the page as if daring it to prove her wrong. All of these faces…she knew them. She'd seen them before. Had she read this book? None of it made since. She moved her hand hesitantly over the page and when she finally allowed her fingers to make contact she saw it all.

She was giving birth to Henry but instead of holding him she told them to take him. Another birthday celebrated alone until the ten your old boy showed up claiming to be her son. The curse breaking and meeting her parents. Falling into the hat and ending up in a different world. Being rescued by the woman who had raised her son. Henry being taken to Neverland. Her and his other mother working together to get him back. Pan casting a new curse and Regina telling her the only way to stop it was her taking Henry away. Regina telling her she would give her new memories…happy ones…a life with Henry. Driving away and watching in the rear view mirror as her family had been enveloped in the purple mist.

Emma gasped as if waking up from a nightmare.

"Mom?" She felt Henry place a hand on her shoulder then looked up at him with wide eyes.

"Oh my God."


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks to all who read/followed/reviewed the last chapter! You guys are awesome!

New York Present Day

Emma looked into her son's wide eyes. None of it had been real. Her memories of keeping Henry, of raising him had all been planted memories. Regina had told her before they crossed the town line that she would give them happy memories of a lifetime together and she had. Emma took a breath. She didn't know how to feel. On one hand she was happy to remember she had parents and friends that loved her.

But her life with her son…it wasn't real. She hadn't been with him. She'd given him up for adoption after he was born and she'd missed out on his life. All this last year she'd held on to those memories, cherished them. She loved her son more then anything else in the world and the fact that she hadn't always been with him as her false memories told her was devastating. She found herself wishing for a moment that she could go back and somehow unknow what she knew now. She found herself wishing she'd thrown that damn book in the dumpster where they never would have seen it so they could go on living their happy lives together.

"Mom?" Henry asked her.

Emma swallowed and blinked back the tears that had begun to form in her eyes.

"Are you ok?" Henry asked her.

Emma shook her head even as a tear fell down her cheek. She hastily wiped it away with the back of her hand and looked back at her son…not just her son…their son. He was Regina and Neal's as well. Henry had two other parents who loved him very much. It wasn't just the two of them anymore and would likely never be again.

"I'm fine Henry…I just…" she couldn't find the words.

"Kinda shocking to remember everything at once huh?" He asked. "But hey you actually stayed conscious so you did better then me." He gave her that crooked grin that she'd come to adore.

She had to appreciate his sense of humor even in a situation like this one. She gave him a half laugh. "Yeah…it may take me minute." She gave him a grin so that he wouldn't see how torn she was about suddenly receiving their memories back. "Five minutes ago I'm a regular Joe with an adorable son just trying to make ends meet and now all of a sudden I'm a princess again."

"And the savior!" Henry reminded her.

Emma groaned. "Ok, my one request is that we stop calling me that."

Henry smirked, it was a face that now reminded her very much of his other mother. "You can't hide from what you are." He told her grinning.

She rolled her eyes. "Ok smarty pants."

"Mom, what are we gonna do?" He asked her. "We have to get back to them."

Emma groaned internally. Looks like she would be eating the words she'd said to Hook that morning. "Hook left a note in the book telling us where he would be staying."

Henry flipped to the back of the book and pulled out the note. "What did he say when he left it?"

"He said that my family was in danger." She told him.

"Grandma and Grandpa?" Henry asked with a worried look on his face. "Did he say anything about my Mom?"

Emma looked into his worried eyes. "He just said my family."

"We need to go and talk to him." Henry told her already ready to begin their next big adventure.

"I suppose we do." Emma agreed. It looked as if they were in for a long evening.

XXXXXXXX

Hook grinned when he heard the knock on his hotel room door. That didn't take long. He took his time as he walked to the door figuring that he would let her sweat it out a bit. When he finally did pull it open he simply smirked and leaned against the door frame.

"Swan, Did you decide you hadn't had enough of my dashing good looks after all?" he asked.

"Save it Hook." Emma shoved the book at him before pushing her way inside the room followed by Henry. "What the hell is going on?!"

"What no kiss hello?" He asked as he shut the door behind her. He had the grin on his face when she turned to glare at him and then turned to the boy. "Hello lad, you certainly have shot up over the last year."

"Hi Hook." Henry greeted. "What going on with my family?" The boy jumped right to the question.

Hook shook his head. "Alright. I guess we'll get right down to business then."

"You said my family is in danger." Emma told him.

"Indeed they are." He answered.

"What about my Mom?" Henry asked. "Neal?"

"I'm afraid that everyone that went back to the Enchanted Forest is in danger Henry. It's why I came here." He told them.

"What happened?" Emma wanted to know.

"Well when we returned to the Enchanted Forest there was a sorceress who had taken over living in Regina's castle. At first we weren't to worried about her as she hadn't caused any trouble in our part of the kingdom, but then things changed." Hook told them.

"What changed?" Henry asked.

"Well we found out that she had a vendetta against a few people, specifically Regina but she isn't to keen on Snow or Charming either. She honestly seems to have it out for everyone. The first thought in everyone's minds was that Regina had possibly done something to piss her off at some point…even Regina assumed that was why, but once we actually saw her…Regina had no idea who she was or what she had done to make her so angry." He told them.

"Is she sure?" Emma asked knowing that Regina had offended quite a few people without even knowing it. "Maybe she just doesn't remember her."

"Trust me Emma, this woman is not someone that you would easily forget." Hook told her.

Emma let out a breath. "So what has she done? How did you get here? Why didn't my parents come? Or Regina?"

"It's complicated, your mother couldn't make the trip because we weren't for sure if it would work. The fairies managed to figure out a way to create a portal but since it had never been done before we knew it would be dangerous. We couldn't take that chance with your mother." He said. "She's pregnant Emma and we were worried what the trip might do to her. Your father didn't want to leave your mother when there was a threat to her."

Emma nodded as if she hadn't been punched in the gut with the fact that she would soon be a big sister…at thirty years old. "So why not Regina? Or Neal?"

"I'm starting to think that you aren't happy to see me love." Hook stated as she rolled her eyes. "They don't exactly know I'm here." He shared. "When we tossed around the idea of coming to you for help Regina and Neal were adamant that we leave the two of you out of it. Neither would be happy to know I'm here. Regina would probably rip my heart out I have no doubt. They felt it would be to dangerous and both of them knowing the way that their son wants to be a hero…well they weren't favorable to the idea of involving you or him."

"So what did this sorceress do?!" Henry wanted to know running out of patience.

"She cast another curse." Hook told them. "I barely got out in time."

"Another curse?" Emma asked.

"Yes…let's just say that Storybrook is back on the map and all of our favorite residents are currently living there again." Hook told them.

"Their here?!" Henry asked with wide eyes. "I can see my Mom again?!"

"That you can lad, although she is cursed at the moment so she likely won't know who you are." He told him.

Emma once again felt her heart pick up to hear Henry talk of his excitement to see his Mom, this must have been how Regina felt all those years ago. The terrified feeling that she was going to lose her son forever. She swallowed. "So how do we break the curse?" Emma asked. "It can't be the same as last time…that would be to easy. Do we show them the book? It worked for me and Henry."

"The book was enchanted specifically for you and Henry and worked here. There you will have the curse working against you." He shared. "I don't know how exactly it is to be broken, but I do have this." He pulled out a small vial from his pocket that had a blue liquid inside.

"What is it?" Emma asked.

"It's the potion that the fairies made for those who lost their memories when they crossed the town line. There was only enough for one." Hook told her.

"How is breaking the curse on one person going to help us?" Emma asked.

"Well I would say that if you chose wisely who you give this too then that person may be able to help find the answers to your questions." He told her.

Emma stared at him for a moment before taking the vial into her hand. "Regina." She said.

XXXXXXXX

"We should leave tomorrow." Henry told her as she tucked him into his bed later that evening.

"Henry, first of all we can't just go marching in there with no plan and second we aren't going to do anything. No way am I letting you go into that town when we have no idea what could be waiting for us there." She took a breath. "You can stay here with your uncle Jacob while I go in and figure out how to break the curse."

"Seriously?" The boy raised his brow in that way that Emma now knew was purely Regina. "I'm not just going to stay here, I want to see them…I want to see my Mom." He told her.

"Henry I'm not going to argue about this, it's to dangerous. We know nothing about this woman, we have no idea what she's capable of. It is way to dangerous for you to go there." she told her son.

"Please, Emma…" Her heart lurched when he called her by her name. "Mom…" He corrected. "You know me, I'm the kid that stole a credit card and made my way to Boston to find you." He pointed out. "You know that the minute you leave I will sneak off and make my way to Storybrook anyway. So the way I see it you can either take me and keep an eye on me yourself or I can come on my own and unprotected."

"Henry" Emma took a deep breath trying not to let her frustration with her son's stubbornness show. "This is exactly why Regina didn't want you to know. You can't just go running off with no concern for your safety." She laid her hand on her son's forehead. "I know you want to be a hero, but sometimes being a hero means sitting on the side lines for a bit. I won't be able to concentrate on the curse if I'm worried about you the whole time."

"That's a nice try Mom, but I'm still going." He said stubbornly. "My Mom is in danger and I want to see her."

"I know you do." she let out a breath, "But right now the curse is in effect, she won't know who either of us are Henry, you can come back when the curse is broken,"

"No, I'm gonna help, I need to help. This is my family too Mom. I need to go back and help them." He argued.

Emma sighed as she looked at the face of her son. "We'll talk about it some more in the morning Henry. For right now you need to get some sleep. We certainly can't make plans for what we are gonna do if we're both exhausted. We need to talk to Hook and get some more details."

"You're not going to let me go are you?" he asked.

"I said we'll talk about it in the morning." she told him and leaned in to place a kiss to his head. "Get some sleep."

Henry said nothing and turned on his side to face the wall. Emma simply shook her head and walked out of the room. She understood that he wanted to go and help his family. Of course he did. Her kid had a hero complex like she'd never seen before, but she just couldn't justify taking him with her into a battleground when she had no idea who she was going up against. As smart as her son was he could also be a bit gullible. He'd given his heart to Peter Pan for crying out loud. She simply couldn't take the chance that out of some misplaced sense of heroics he could possibly end up getting hurt or worse.

No she would call her foster brother in the morning. Henry could stay with him just until she knew it was safe for him to return to Storybrook. It was the best way. He would have to watch him like a hawk she knew. Henry's threat to come anyway certainly wasn't an empty one. She had no doubt that her son would attempt just that. He was a very smart and occasionally cunning boy. Something else he'd received from his brunette mother.

She poured herself a glass of wine before sitting down on the couch.

Regina. The woman had kept up her end of the deal when it came to giving them a happy life. Even going so far as to refuse the idea of letting either of them help with this new threat. Even if it meant she would be cursed forever she had been unwilling to allow her son to be put in harms way.

Emma had to appreciate that. She'd learned a lot about the brunette in the time they had spent looking for their son in Neverland, but the one thing she'd learned above all was that the woman loved her son more then life itself. She couldn't imagine how hard it had been for her to stand there and watch the person she loved most leave her. It must have been hell. She wondered what the woman had gone through once they'd gone back to the Enchanted Forest.

Then there was her parents. Freaking Snow White and Prince Charming, Emma laughed a little. She had been so happy to finally have a family and so heart broken only to lose them again. She wondered how to two of them coped without her. Sure she imagined they had been sad, but I mean hell they were already expecting another child. That hadn't taken long. Emma wondered if it was her replacement. Would this child be loved more then she? Not that she wasn't used to coming in second fiddle. Her time in foster homes had shown her that she was never anyone's first priority. It wasn't that she wasn't happy for her parents and the fact that they could move on and be happy, but…Did they miss her at all? I mean how long had the dust settled before the two of them were already planning to extend her family…without her?

She sounded like a selfish brat. It wasn't that she wanted them to be miserable, but Emma remembered how she had felt that day in the cave when Snow confessed she wanted another chance at motherhood. It had stung. Of course she would want another chance since she missed out on her first…but…Emma shook her head trying to shake these feelings that had been dogging her every since she'd remembered her past. She'd grown up all alone with no one to love her. Her parents had put her into that wardrobe knowing she would be alone her whole life, but they did it so she would come back and break the curse. The fact that Regina and Neal were fighting tooth and nail to keep Henry from coming into the town and putting himself in danger to break the same curse made her head hurt. They cared more about their son's welfare then that of themselves. They were willing to live a cursed life if only it meant that Henry would never be put in harms way.

Emma loved her parents…she truly did, but she can't say that she would have made the same choices that they had…or maybe she would. She did after all give Henry up for adoption, but she had done that for his best interests, because she knew that she couldn't give him a good life, not because she needed him to come back and do something for her later in life.

She took a breath as she finished off her wine. She really needed to stop thinking. She laughed to herself, but then again it wasn't exactly easy being the daughter of Snow White and Prince Charming…being given the title of "Savior" Emma cringed just thinking of the word. It appeared that once again everyone's happy endings would be on her. Couldn't she just go back to being normal? Why did everything in her life always have to be so damn complicated?

She stood and took her glass to the sink before turning to go into her room to attempt to get some sleep. Surprisingly enough she fell asleep quickly. The events of the day had worn her out and caused sleep to come easily.

It wouldn't be until morning when she woke to the sun shining into her window that the peace that sleep had brought to her would flee in an instant and be replaced by shear panic. When she went to her son's room to wake him for breakfast she found only a note. Henry was gone.

XXXXXXXX

The Enchanted Forest Six Months Ago

Regina listened as the majority of the royal council talked to each other in slight panic. A special meeting had been called that morning as there had been strange lights in the sky the night before near her old home. Regina had seen them from her balcony and she had to admit it was worrisome. She couldn't say what spell had been performed without going to the sight where it was done, but judging from the lights she had seen in the sky she knew it was powerful. Very powerful.

The royal council was a mess of everyone attempting to talk at once and honestly they were giving her a headache. Grumpy had suggested storming the castle of the sorceress and attempting to take her prisoner to get answers. Many of the dwarves had agreed saying that Blue could do her spell that would render the woman powerless for a time. The same spell they'd used on her once.

Idiots.

That fact was that they were very likely underestimating this woman. Obviously this woman had a plan and Regina seriously doubted that she would fall for the same trick that she once had. She herself had only fell for it because she had been blinded by her need for vengeance and hate for Snow White. If she had been thinking logically she would have recognized the set up. She honestly thought these people were fools for thinking that this woman wouldn't catch on to the fact they were attempting to trick her.

They didn't even know what her motives were, let alone her weaknesses. They needed to find out more about her before coming up with a plan of action on how to defeat her.

"I don't think that storming into her castle is a the best idea." She heard Robin say. "We don't know anything about her, much less her weaknesses or why she's doing any of this. We could be marching straight into a trap." He told the table.

Regina raised her eyebrow at the man, maybe he wasn't as much of an idiot as the rest of them.

"Regina what to you think?" Snow asked her from across the table.

"It pains me to say it…" she started "But I have to agree with the bandit. We need to find out her motivations. We need to know the spell that she cast first. There will be no way of fighting whatever it is if we don't first know what we are fighting."

"Is there a way you can find out what it is that she did out there last night?" David asked her.

Regina shrugged. "I would need to go to the site of the spell." She told them. "A spell that powerful will leave a…residue. I should at the very least be able to tell what ingredients were used. Once I know that, I can research what was used and figure out the purpose of the spell."

"We can all go." Snow stated.

"No offence dear but I work better on my own, not to mention that your current condition would only slow us down and possibly put us all in more danger." Regina shook her head. "No I will go on my own. It will be much easier for me to remain out of site if I have no one with me."

"Regina, I'm not going to let you go out there by yourself…it could be a trap." Snow told her.

"I am quite adept at avoiding traps dear, I can certainly handle myself." Regina told her.

"I agree with Snow, Regina." Neal spoke up. "You can't go in there by yourself. We have no idea what this woman is capable of. I will come with you."

"No offence dear, but you aren't exactly the best at tracking and you very much like our son…" Regina paused and swallowed once again nearly paralyzed by the memory of her little boy. She shook her head and continued with her thought. "You are very much the act first, think later kind of person."

"And you are hot headed and stubborn." Neal pointed out. "You could get yourself in just as much trouble as I could, you need someone there to watch your back and I think our son would not be very happy with me if I let his mother walk into the line of fire alone."

She glared at him for a moment. He knew that playing the trump card of what Henry would want works every time with her. "I think it quite pointless to debate what our son would want when he doesn't even know who either of us are." she stated feeling only slightly guilty when she saw the sting of her words hit him.

"Even still, I'm not letting you go alone." Neal told her. "I'm going and that's the end of it."

"If I may." Robin interrupted their argument. "I think that Neal is right you shouldn't go in alone, but it's my opinion that we need to send more then just two. We need to have people who can watch all sides while Regina gathers what she needs to figure out the spell that was cast."

"I would volunteer to go." Mulan spoke up for the first time.

"As do I." Robin added.

"I will go as well." Ruby said and grinned. "Never know when you could use a wolf."

"I'll go too." David said. "I think that will give us enough people to protect all sides while Regina gets the information she needs."

"Lovely." Regina fumed. "A fairytale road trip, I'll be sure and bring my camera." she pushed herself back from the table miffed that she would have to spend the next few days with these people.

Aurora leaned over to Belle as Regina exited. "What's a camera?" she wanted to know.

Snow stood to follow Regina from the room. "Regina!" she called out.

Regina turned in annoyance and glared at the woman.

Snow swallowed knowing it was never a good idea to poke the bear when it was annoyed. "You're sure you can figure out what the spell was?" She brought her hands to her stomach and stroked lightly.

Regina noticed the gesture and softened a little. She could see Snow was worried that she may have yet another child in danger. "As long as the lovely posse that will be all around me doesn't muck it up I am quite sure I can figure out what spell was cast." she looked into the worried woman's eyes for a moment and sighed. It appeared that motherhood truly had made her soft. "Try not to worry, the last thing we need while dealing with this mess is for you to go into premature labor."

Snow nodded and looked down at her stomach. "Do you think we are all in danger the way everyone else seems to?"

Regina never was one to sugarcoat things. "I don't know." She told her honestly. "I won't have any idea what this woman is up to until I can get to the site where she cast this spell. I do know that worrying yourself to death over it in the mean time isn't going to do anyone any good. Try to relax, there is no point worrying until we know what is happening."

Snow nodded oddly comforted. "Ok." she laid her hand on Regina's arm. "Be careful out there…You're the only family I have left." She told her.

Regina blinked at the woman for a moment before giving her a slow nod. "I will." she told her. It was always strange to her when Snow or David referred to her as family. Yes she was Snow's stepmother, but she considered that job as being over ages ago. She supposed that her being Henry's mother and also the fact that she was once a mother to Snow as well did make them family…whether she liked it or not.

XXXXXXXX

They decided to journey to her former castle on horseback. The fastest way of course would be for her to aparate in, but it was very possible that the woman had magic detectors set up on her land. Regina had when she'd been Queen. She knew the location where any magic was cast near her castle. It was one of her ways of protecting herself from other magic users who may have wanted to do her harm so using magic was out of the question.

Once she got to the site she should be able to sense some of the ingredients used in whatever spell this woman had cast. Knowing the typical ingredients used in magic and being able to detect them was fairly simple for anyone who had used it for any amount of time.

They had allowed her to lead the group. She knew her own lands better then any of them and she also knew of the best places to cast spells that needed a lot of space. Judging from the lights in the sky the night before Regina suspected that the woman had used one of her favored spots.

The ride had been uneventful thus far and mostly quiet. The plan was to make it to the site of the spell today and then set up camp outside of the castle grounds for the evening. Camping on the grounds would be to much of a risk, they needed to get in and out quickly if they weren't going to be detected by the woman that they knew nothing about.

It was strange, the woman had come into the realm a few months before their group had returned here from Storybrook. Up until this point no one from the outer kingdoms had seen her. Her former home had been left empty and according to Robin most were afraid to set foot onto the ground. Rumors of the place being haunted or cursed had kept away even the bravest squatters, that was until this woman had come here.

None of them were sure where she'd actually come from. It would have had to been a land that had been left unaffected by the curse, which there were several. The only lands that had been involved where the ones that Regina had a personal vendetta against. That had included Wonderland, the land that Whale had come from and of course the Enchanted Forest. Truthfully this woman could be from anywhere and that would make her motives here in the Enchanted Forest all the more confusing.

There was the possibility that she had been banished from wherever she had been from. That seemed the likely scenario, but there was also the possibility that there was something here that the woman wanted.

Most everything of real value had been taken to Storybrook with the curse, including much of the things that had magical properties, but that didn't mean that the woman couldn't have brought things with her from wherever she was from. It still left the question of what her motives were.

Regina looked over as Robin rode up beside her.

"Do you really believe you can figure out what spell was cast?" He wondered. "How long does that kind of thing stay active?"

"A spell as powerful as the one we saw last night would leave a residue for some time." She answered him. "Considering that we are getting there fairly quickly I should be able to sense all the ingredients used."

Robin nodded his head. "You seem fairly sure of yourself."

Regina smirked and looked at him from the corner of her eye. "I am sure of myself."

Robin studied her for a moment. He had to admit he was intrigued by the woman. She had a fearsome reputation before coming back here. Among the people who were not in this Storybrook with her she was still highly feared. The people who had been there though seemed to trust her including Snow and David. He couldn't say that he'd trusted her at first either but after hearing what she'd done…what she'd sacrificed to save everyone he did feel better about her.

Then there had been her interaction with his son. The day she'd brought Roland back to him after the boy had gotten lost in the palace he'd seen the way she looked at him. It had been with a mixture of humor and sadness. No doubt the small boy probably reminded her of her own child, the one she'd given up. It couldn't be easy for her to be back here, knowing that she would never see the child she loved so much again.

"Why do I never see you around the palace?" he asked her.

She looked back over at her. "I have no interest in socializing." She told him. "Especially with people who only tolerate me because they have to."

Robin shook his head. "Do you not have friends there?"

Regina laughed. "I also have no interest in having friends." She told him. "My life is better lived alone."

"Doesn't seem like a very happy life." He observed.

Regina smirked "Happiness isn't in the cards for me. I learned a long time ago to simply accept my life the way it is. Believing in a happy ending only makes you more devastated when it is ripped away from you."

"So you just give up hope?" he asked.

Regina simply stared ahead. "Hope is deceiving."

Robin looked at the woman for a moment. "I have a hard time believing that his is what your son would want for you."

Regina snapped her eyes back to his. "My son isn't here and the only thing that could make me happy is him, don't talk to me about my son."

"I'm just trying to figure out why you are punishing yourself…is it because of your past? Because you don't believe you deserve happiness?" He asked.

Regina looked at the man fuming. Who in the hell does he think he is? Acting as if he had some right to speak about her life. "You have no idea who I am." She told him. "You don't know me or my child so I will thank you to stay out of my affairs, Bandit." She told him.

Robin simply shrugged. "Just trying to help, Your Majesty." He mocked. "My son has been asking about you by the way, he told he me would like to visit you again."

Regina swallowed for a moment. It was a bit harder to dismiss a little boy. "Your son is very sweet and while I appreciate the sentiment I don't think that I am the best influence for him to have in his life." She told him. "I'm sure you'll agree."

Robin shrugged. "I don't know, you did something that seemed to make an impression. I have found that children can be surprisingly good judges of character."

Regina again thought about her son. "Yes I suppose they can." she left the conversation at that and trotted ahead of him.

I guess that means our conversation is over Robin mused chuckling to himself. She certainly wasn't an easy woman to get to know. He could understand her need to keep herself distanced from others. From what he had learned about her it would seem that she'd lost everyone in her life that she'd ever loved. It made sense that the woman would want to keep others at a safe distance.

He wasn't sure why she intrigued him so much. She was short tempered and often times down right rude. She seemed to a have a sassy comment to nearly everything that was said to her. She obviously knew that she was beautiful and was not afraid to show it, but then showed no interest in actually impressing anyone in a romantic sense. She also assumed that she was smarter then everyone else…which in the case of some of the people he'd met from the other land he had to admit she may be right about.

Robin had always had a weakness for trying to help people. Especially when those people seemed to be lost causes. Regina claimed to be a "bad influence" for his son. It was almost as if she wanted him to assume that she was evil to the core, however he could most definitely see past that. An evil woman would not have done what she did. A selfish person would not give up the only person she loved to save a town full of people she loathed and an evil woman would certainly not be here helping them.

Many people looked at good and evil as a simple equation, black or white, you either were or you weren't, but Robin looked at it much differently. He understood that there were definite shades of gray. He happened to reside in the gray area of life himself most of the time.

Regina had come up with the nickname of bandit for him and she wasn't exactly wrong. For years he had been exactly that. He fully believed in helping the impoverished people of the land and if that meant robbing the rich to help them he had certainly been willing to do so.

In a world of black and white stealing was wrong, but when he then used the riches he gained to help starving children…well that's what made it a gray area. Suddenly it didn't seem quite so wrong anymore.

Not that the things she had done hadn't been truly atrocious. Knowing who she had been at first made him very suspicious of her and her motivations, but he tended to trust his instincts about people and his instincts told him that Regina Mills no longer wanted to hurt anyone. If he doubted it he wouldn't let her anywhere near his son.

He was pulled from his thoughts when she suddenly stopped at a clearing in front of them.

"This is it." Regina said as she quickly dismounted her horse.

The others stopped behind her and dismounted as well. They watched as Regina walked to the center of the clearing where it appeared a large fire had burned recently. Without words each of them took a place around the circle all them of them keeping a lookout for anything that may approach them.

Regina walked to the center of the clearing and began to look around. She could still feel the magic in the air. It was dark magic. She shuddered a bit at the feel of it. She bent down to where the fire had burned not long ago and closed her eyes. She began to sense the magical properties that were there, she could still feel the ingredients that had been used there. She swallowed when she felt the overwhelming sense of dread. She didn't need to look in a spell book to figure out the curse that had been cast here, she knew it well. It was one she herself had used many years ago.

"Regina?" She heard David call out in question.

It was a powerful curse indeed. She sensed that everything had been added minus one thing, the most important part of the curse. It wasn't yet complete, but God help them all when it was.

Regina turned to address the group, but when she did there was a loud pop and suddenly there was a plume of orange smoke in the center of the circle. Everyone around her drew their weapons as Ruby quickly changed to her wolf form. Regina brought a fireball into her hand ready to launch it at their intruder.

"I was wondering how long it would take for you to get here." they heard a woman's voice say.

Regina squinted in an attempt to make out the woman that was now standing before them. The woman's face was illuminated by the moonlight and unless her eyes were playing tricks on her the woman was green.

Regina continued to stare at the woman, ready to launch the fireball towards her if she made a move.

"Now, Now" the woman said with a smile on her face. "There's no need for weapons, I have no plans for any of you tonight."

"Who are you?" Regina finally asked continuing to study the woman.

The woman gave her a lazy smile. "My name is Elphaba although I have been given several different nick names." She began to walk a circle around Regina as she looked her up and down. "At last we meet." The woman said. "I will admit that I have waited a very long time for this day."

"Is that why you cast this curse? You wanted to meet me." Regina sneered at her. "Really dear all you needed to do was ask."

The woman threw back her head and laughed. "Darling I have many reasons for casting this particular curse, but I will admit that you are at the center of it." She gave Regina a sly grin. "Are you afraid yet, Regina?" She asked.

"Why should I be afraid of someone who seems to have forgotten the most important ingredient to this particular curse?" Regina asked. "Really dear if you want to scare me you will at the very least need to get your spells right."

The woman smiled again as she looked around at the people Regina had brought with her. "I see you brought your posse." she told her. "Really a rather pathetic bunch, don't you think? I was under the impression that Regina Mills kept much better company then this bunch of misfits."

"It wasn't my choice to bring them, it was insisted upon, I would much rather work alone." Regina told her.

"As do I." The witch told her. "I think Regina that by now you would have learned to never underestimate your enemy."

Regina inclined her head. "And how exactly have I underestimated you?"

"By assuming that I don't know how to enact my own curse of course. I have the last ingredient darling, I simply have yet to add it…I wanted to see you first, have a little chat."

"Why me?" Regina asked as if she were bored with the entire conversation. "I've never met you before, I certainly have no connection to you."

"You're right." The woman answered. "You haven't seen me before…my face is certainly one that isn't easy to forget." She grinned again. "But we are connected Regina."

Regina said nothing only continued to glare at the woman.

"Tell me darling" The green woman started. "How are you enjoying your return home? Missing your castle yet. I certainly hope you aren't to upset with me for taking it over…along with some of your things."

Regina tilted her head. "Not at all…although I have to say I pulled off that outfit much better then you are dear. I'm afraid the color does nothing for your skin tone."

The woman once again laughed. "And how are you finding your new life in the palace? Are you missing your darling son yet?"

The woman felt a hint of victory when she saw Regina's eyes flash with pain.

"You are I see…such a shame the way things happen, you believing that you can finally have what you want only to have it taken away again." The woman said.

"Is there a point to this conversation?" Regina asked.

The woman gave her a condescending smile. "Poor Regina, growing up in riches, with parents who gave you everything, becoming Queen of a land, but still being unsatisfied." The woman gestured to the group around her. "Even now after all the evil you have done you still have people who want to protect you. How is it darling that you seem to find people to care about you even being…" The woman looked at her with disgust. "What you are? Yet you still feel the need to sulk and cry about what a terrible life you have."

"What do you know of my life?" Regina asked her.

"Enough to know that you haven't suffered nearly enough." The woman told her. "But don't worry dear…that will soon be rectified."

"So this…" she gestured to the spot where the spell had been cast. "All of this…it's about me?"

The woman smiled and gestured to everyone standing around them silently watching the conversation. Each one waiting for the right moment to strike. "Oh, it's about all of you, but I do have a particularly lovely fate waiting for you."

"Why? What have I…or anyone here for that matter done to you?" Regina asked.

The woman smirked. "All in good time Regina." The woman took a step towards Regina. Neal moved forward as if to shield her but Regina held up her hand to tell him to stop. "You think you know misery now?" The woman asked her. "You haven't even brushed the surface, but you will Regina, I can promise you now that before the end of this you will know what it is to have everything you've ever dreamed of." She turned to sneer at the group of people standing around her. "And you will know what it is to lose it." She turned back to Regina with an evil smile on her face. "I'll see you soon darling." The woman said before once again the orange plume of smoke appeared and the woman was gone.

Regina stood with the fireball still in her hand. Everyone around her relaxed and put away their weapons.

"What the hell was that?!" David was the first to speak. "Regina, who was that woman?"

"I have no idea." Regina answered as she extinguished the fireball in her hand.

"Well you have to have some idea." David said looking at her. "She definitely has it out for you. Is she someone you cursed?"

Regina shot her eyes to David. "I told you I don't know who she is…I've never seen that woman before in my life."

"Well she certainly knows you." Mulan stated as she walked to the center of the circle. "And it would appear that you are not her favorite person."

Regina looked over to Mulan. "I'm no one's favorite person." She stated. "So that's hardly surprising."

"Were you able to detect the ingredients used in the spell?" Ruby asked. "So you can look up the spell she did?"

"I don't need to look it up, I know it well." Regina answered.

"You mentioned she was missing an ingredient." Robin spoke up. "What is it she's missing?"

"The heart of the thing she loves most." Regina told them.

Nearly everyone's eyes widened. "Regina," Neal started. "What spell is she planning to use?"

"The Dark Curse." Regina answered.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope this chapter made since. I was pretty tired when I wrote it. I would also like to say for all the Snow/Charming fans…I hope you aren't to mad at me for Emma's thoughts on her parents but I do feel as a child who was abandoned her entire life, even knowing the reason these might be some of the feelings that she has about it.
> 
> Please leave me a review and tell me what you thought of this chapter! I am really excited about this story and honestly have the whole thing planed out in my head all the way until the end…I just need to write it all down.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks to all who read/followed/reviewed. I am really enjoying this story. Literally I have this thing planned in my head all the way to the end. It's just finding the time to get the chapters written.

Six Months Ago The Enchanted Forest

"No." Regina said adamantly as she once again found herself sitting in the royal council meeting.

"Regina, We don't have a choice." Snow told her as she rubbed her hands nervously over her stomach. "If she does cast the curse again we will have to find a way to send someone into the other world before it hits to find Emma. She's the savior and our only hope of breaking the curse."

"She is also the only mother that my son knows." Regina told her. "And if Emma receives her memory back and she comes to try and save us all then Henry will soon follow."

"Emma would never let anything happen to Henry." Snow told her.

"Not intentionally, no." Regina agreed. "But I know my son and if he receives his memory back there is nothing that will keep him from trying to save us all. He wants to be a hero."

"Emma would never let him walk into a dangerous situation." Charming argued.

"The same way I never would have let him steal a credit card, and hop on a bus to Boston." Regina stated flatly. "Henry is a smart boy and it won't matter what Emma does. He will find a way."

"But, Regina…" Snow paused. "If they come back and break the curse…we could see them again."

Regina looked Snow in the eye. "I would give my life to look at my little boy one more time…to hold him for just a moment." she stated and Snow nearly teared up as she looked at the pain on Regina's face. "But I will not put him in harms way. Not ever."

"But we will be cursed…you will be cursed." Charming told her.

"Then I will be cursed…I will live the rest of my life under that curse if it means Henry is safe." Regina said not willing to be moved from her position.

"I have to say that I agree with Regina." Neal told the table. "I can't knowingly put Henry or Emma at risk. We have no idea what this woman's motives are…what if she's doing all of this to somehow try and gain the powers of the Savior…or what if she's doing it to try to get Henry's heart like Pan did?" Neal shook his head. "This could all be a set up to try and get them to come to town."

"But we can't live out our lives cursed." Hook reasoned. "There are other children here…those children will be cursed as well."

"We have to send for them Regina…you have to find a way to open a portal to that world." Snow told her.

"I won't." Regina once again looked her in the eye. "And this discussion is over. I'm tired and am going to my room." she told the table and stood.

"Regina…" Snow started, but she'd already gone from the room.

Robin excused himself from the table and stood quickly to follow. "Regina!" He called out when he'd exited the room.

Regina sighed and turned to face him. "What do you want Bandit? I told you all in there that I am tired."

"I know…I just…" He sighed. "Regina, if this curse is cast…is there a chance that I will be separated from my son?"

Regina looked into his eyes and saw the worry there. It caused her resolve to soften a bit. "There is a chance." she told him.

Robin swallowed and nodded solemnly. "Is there anyway of knowing for sure…what her plans are when she casts it?"

Regina shook her head. "No, not unless she chooses to share with us her plans which I highly doubt she will do."

"Is there no way to stop it?" He asked feeling desperate.

"If you are trying to talk me into going along with the Charming's plan it's not going to work. I will not put my son in harms way." She told him.

Robin shook his head. "I wouldn't expect you too…I wouldn't either if that makes things better." He told her. "What I mean is…would there be a way to stop her? Even if it meat killing her? Like you I don't want my son to be at this woman's mercy."

Regina looked at him for a moment. She understood his worry for his child. She had the very same worry for her own which is why she refused to go along with helping Snow and David. "There's always a way, but we would have to get to her first and considering her apparent skill with magic it wouldn't be easy."

"But it could be done?" he asked.

"I suppose…it's possible." she told him.

"If I were to want to try…would you be willing to help me?" He asked her.

She looked at his worried eyes for a moment. "It wouldn't be easy…there is no guarantee it would work…and we could both die ourselves."

"I can't lose my son Regina…he's all I have…he's everything." He told her softly. "Will you please help me?"

Regina's heart caught as he echoed the words that she'd once said to Emma about her own son. She let out a breath. "We will need to do some research…find out who this woman is, where she came from and most importantly what she wants." She told him.

Robin looked into her eyes and she could see the relief that was there at her words…however misplaced that relief may be. She didn't tell him that it would probably be impossible. She didn't tell him that there would probably be no way of even getting close to this woman, much less killing her. She decided to let him have hope…even though she knew that fighting this curse would be impossible. Better for him to have hope and not spend what could be his final days with his son in constant fear. Besides if they were attempting to fight it in this way it could distract Snow and David from trying to find a way to Emma.

"We will have to find a man named Jefferson. He left us soon after we first arrived here." She told him.

"What can this Jefferson do for us?" he asked.

"He used to be a realm jumper…if there is anyone who would know who this woman is it would be him." Regina told him and paused. The chances of any of this working were slim and if they were soon to be cursed again he should spend all the time with his son that he could. "You should bring your son with us…this part of our journey shouldn't be dangerous and Jefferson has a daughter. It would be nice for Roland to see another child as there are currently none in the kingdom."

"You think it will be ok for him to come?" He asked.

"I do, Grace would probably like to see another child as well…especially if they have gone back to living in the woods and away from civilization as they once did." She told him.

He gave her a genuine smile. "Thank you."

"Don't thank me yet." she told him. "You may want to let Neal in on our plan. He can keep an eye on things while we are gone and keep up…I don't know…morale why we are trying to formulate a plan."

"He can also keep an eye out to make sure that Snow and David don't try to send someone for Emma and your son behind your back."

She smiled a little. "That too."

XXXXXXXX

Regina returned to her room and took a deep breath.

Another curse, she thought to herself. Every since she had talked to the green sorceress who called herself Elphaba she hadn't felt steady.

The fact that they could be sent back to Storybrook…they would all forget who they are and everything they know. In her case she guessed that wouldn't be all that terrible. After all she was miserable here. Forgetting everything could in fact be an enormous relief, but truthfully she wouldn't give up her memories for anything.

It was true she had more bad memories then good. Being brought up by a mother who literally had no heart, having her true love killed in front of her then being forced to marry a man three times her age and living those years in absolute hell…those things would be wonderful to forget, but her good memories made up for all of that.

Her memories with Henry…she wouldn't trade them for anything. The absolute love that he had brought to her had quite literally saved her life. She wouldn't trade her memories of her little prince even if it meant she had to keep all of her horrible ones.

Even though keeping the good memories made her that much more sad in the mean time because the little boy she loved so much was now gone.

She hadn't lied when she told Robin she would do everything she could to keep the curse from being cast, but she also knew that it was probably going to be a failed attempt. When someone is determined to get their revenge they are relentless and nearly impossible to stop.

But why was this woman seeking revenge?

Regina went back over the conversation they'd had the night before. The woman had shown particular hostility towards her, but she truly had no idea why. She'd never seen her before and had no idea what she could have done to piss her off so badly. Unless her curse or something from her past had done something to harm someone this woman loved.

She'd also seemed to have a dislike for everyone that had been there though. As if she thought she were entitled to something that none of them would give her. It didn't make since to Regina why she would want to cast this curse.

She'd wondered at first if it had something to do with Snow and Charming's baby. Contrary to popular belief true love…real true love was rare. It wasn't that the other couples in the kingdom didn't love each other, they did and most could wake a partner with true loves kiss if it came down to it, but finding your soul mate was something else entirely and that is what Snow and Charming had found in each other. It was it's own sort of magic and it made their children quite powerful. Before the woman had appeared to them Regina thought her possible motivations were to get a hold of the child. The use of dark and light magic together was quite powerful, she and Emma had proven that over and over again.

Even though the woman seemed to have other motives it wouldn't hurt to keep an eye on Snow perhaps put a protection spell on her because while there were other motives she could certainly have more then just one.

She scowled at herself. The fact she was even making protecting Snow a priority was ridiculous to her. She was doing it of course because it was what her son would want. It in no way meant that she had her own feelings for Snow and her safety. No it was her son that would want her to do this so this is what she would do.

She didn't allow herself to dwell on the nagging feeling that if anything happened to her former step daughter she would be devastated. Just because she saw her and talked with her everyday certainly didn't mean she had feelings for her again. No she'd gotten closer to Snow because it was what Henry would want her to do. That was the only reason.

She sighed as she thought about the materials she would need for her journey tomorrow. Even though she didn't believe this would work it certainly couldn't hurt to know more about this woman. Rumple had taught her best in this aspect and that was to know your enemies if you ever expect to beat them.

She'd suggested the bandit bring his son along because for all intents and purposes this could be the last time they get to spend together and as unpredictable is Jefferson could sometimes be she knew he would behave himself with a child around.

She wasn't for sure if the bandit and his son would be separated, but it was best for them to be together now. She hadn't separated all families when she'd cast the curse, only the ones she had a vendetta against so perhaps the woman would leave this family alone.

She hoped so. Being separated from your family was hell.

XXXXXXXX

New York Present Day

Hook woke with a start to the pounding on his door. He rolled over and cursed as he tried to find his pants.

"Hook!" He heard the voice of Emma Swan before the pounding started again.

He smirked and his heart did a slight skip in his chest to find that she'd come back yet again. He pulled his pants on and made his way to the door. He pulled it open and grinned about to speak but Emma pushed right past him.

"He's gone." She told him sounding nearly distraught with panic.

"Who?" He asked still attempting to wake up and get his bearings.

"Who?!" Emma turned to him seething. "Who in the hell do you think?!" She asked him. "Henry!"

Hook looked at her for a moment. Shit, this is exactly what Regina said would happen. "Oh….gone back to Storybrook I imagine."

Emma balled her hands into fists nearly ready to start wailing on him. "This is your fault!" She told him. "You and my parents! What the hell were you thinking?! Especially them. They know how Henry is! They knew that the minute he found out that everyone was cursed again he would go flying off trying to be a hero! And they sent you here anyway!" She yelled with tears forming in her eyes. "Now my son is off God knows where with some crazy sorceress that cursed a whole land who we know nothing about by the way…and he didn't even take the potion with him to give to Regina, so there isn't even anyone there that knows what's going on and that he needs to be protected!"

"All right love" Hook put his hands on Emma's shoulders in an attempt to comfort her. "The lad is smart he will stay out of harms way until we get there. Try to calm down."

Emma pushed his hands away. "Don't tell me to calm down! My son is in danger and he's gone to find his other mother who won't know who he is and she has no idea that she's cursed or there is someone that could hurt our son! Now is not the time to be calm!" She yelled at him.

"Alright." Hook held up his hands. "He can't have gotten that much of a head start, we'll leave now for Storybrook."

Emma took a breath and nodded. It was true. Henry would have had to take a bus to Maine and because of multiple stops he may not have gotten very far yet. Maybe they could even beat him there…Unlikely, but maybe.

"Get dressed." She told him. "We're leaving."

"Do you have the potion?" He asked.

Emma nodded. "Henry better be ok when we get there."

"He'll be fine…the boy is smart. How much harm can the lad get into in a few hours?"

Emma rolled her eyes. More then anyone could guess most likely.

XXXXXXXX

Henry climbed out of the cab in a driveway about a mile outside of the town line. He'd told the cab driver that this was his home and had planned to walk from here. He knew that crossing the line was pretty much impossible when the curse was in effect, unless you were someone that belonged there…such as the savior, or he hoped the son of the savior.

He handed the cabbie Emma's credit card and waited while the man ran it. If Henry Swan…Mills…what was his name now anyway? What name did people who had false memories stick with?

Mills…his last name was Mills.

The man handed Henry back the card and Henry smiled at him. "Thanks." He walked towards that house as if he planned to go in. When the cab backed out of the drive he took off in the other direction towards the road. It would be a little bit of a hike into Storybrook, but he wasn't really worried about that. The chances of anyone being on this road were pretty slim.

His Mom was going to kill him he thought to himself. Both of them…as soon as his other Mom got her memories back. He wished that he had been able to grab the potion before he left the apartment, but his Mom had taken into her room with her and he didn't want to take the chance of waking her up.

He knew that this wasn't exactly the safest thing he'd ever done, but she wasn't going to let him come and he knew that if he'd gone to his uncle's the way his Mom planned it would be near impossible getting away. He'd had to do it now when she wasn't expecting it. He just couldn't let her leave him behind. He wanted…needed to see his Mom.

From the moment he'd gotten his memory back her face had haunted him. The woman who had raised him for ten years of his life had let him go to save him. He could remember the devastation on her face when she hugged him for the last time, the way it had felt to be wrapped in her arms. Her hugs had always made him feel safe…protected and he missed her. All he wanted to do was see her again.

He wondered what it had been like for her in the Enchanted Forest when she'd gone back. Had she been alone? Had anyone at all been there for her? He couldn't bare the thought of her being alone and miserable without someone to love her.

Their relationship had been rocky after he'd found out about the curse. There had been a time that he believed she didn't really love him. He thought that she only took him because he was the son of the savior. The thought had devastated him because up until the moment he'd read that book she'd been his entire world.

He'd had a good childhood. He and his mother had been so close. He could remember every memory with her as if it were yesterday. His first day of school the way he had cried and held on to her leg not wanting to be away from her. She'd bent down to him and promised that if he were brave that she would take him for ice cream after school was over. When he'd left that afternoon he'd run down the steps of the school house and had been filled with an overwhelming sense of relief when he saw her on the side walk. He'd ran to her and when she caught him in her arms and pulled him into a hug he'd felt everything in his world was right again.

There had been the time he decided he wanted to try riding a bike with no training wheels, but didn't want to wait for help and had snuck out on his own to give it a try. He hadn't stayed up any time at all and when he fell and scraped his knee he'd screamed as if he was about to lose his leg. He remembered how she'd coming running out the door at the sound of his cries and he'd been sure she would scold him for not waiting for her but instead she'd taken him in her arms and held him against her. He could still remember being carried into the house and the story she'd told him as she'd cleaned his knee. She'd told him how true loves kiss could heal any hurt and would always make it feel better. As he'd listened to her story he had been distracted from the sting of the scrape and had nearly forgotten about it. When she bent and placed a kiss to his knee she asked how it felt now. He'd been surprised to find that the pain was gone. She'd smiled and said "See true loves kiss does make everything better."

She always called him her little prince. God how he missed hearing that. All he wanted was to see her again, to tell her he was sorry for forgetting how much he loved her and promise her that he would never forget again. She would never have to be alone anymore because he would always be there. He would never leave her.

He thought for a moment about his other mother. Many of the memories he'd had with her of his childhood had been ones he'd had with his Mom. She'd actually given them their memories together so even though she hadn't been with him he'd still had a piece of her, even though he didn't know it at the time. He loved his blonde mother and after living the last year with her their bond had only strengthened, but somewhere deep down he'd always felt as if he were missing something. It was as if something just wasn't right.

Now he knew what that something was. His heart jumped as he thought about the fact that in a few hours he would be seeing his Mom, the one that raised him. The one that loved him more then anything in the world. The one that had kissed away the pain of his scraped knee with true loves kiss.

His heart pounded harder when the Welcome to Storybrook sign came into view. Could outsiders see the sign? He wondered. He approached with caution, no one was around. He swallowed. Hopefully there were no adverse effects for crossing under the curse…well there hadn't been before right? I mean his Mom had brought him from the outside when he was a baby and he was fine.

He took a deep breath and walked past the sign. He'd closed his eyes as he did so expecting the worst but after a moment he opened them and looked around. No magic shield had been thrown up and electrocuted him, he still knew who he was and why he was here. He guessed that was a good sign. He pulled his phone from his pocket when it rang again. It was his Mom. He sighed. He'd promised himself that he would answer her calls as soon as he entered Storybrook, but if he answered now she would make him promise to wait where he was and would probably drive him right back out of town when she got there. No, he would wait until he was actually in town. He planned to go to Granny's and wait. He should be able to duck into the alley and wait there, He would be able to see all the comings and goings and hopefully he would get the chance to see his Mom. He hoped she was ok. He hoped that they could think of a way to get her to drink the potion quickly so that she would remember him.

Then he could promise her that she would never be alone again.

XXXXXXXX

Henry ducked into the alley beside Granny's. This would be there perfect place to see the coming's and goings of everyone in the town as it seemed that everyone is Storybrook stopped by Granny's at some point in their day.

He wanted to shout out when he saw Archie walk by with Pongo, but thought better of it remembering that no one here would actually know who he is.

He looked down when his phone rang again. He sighed seeing his Mother's number for the 8th time in a hour. He hit the button and put the phone to his ear.

"Hey Mom." he answered.

"Henry!" He heard his mother's relieved voice on the other end of the call. "Thank God you are ok! Why in the hell haven't you been answering your calls?!" She scolded.

"Because I knew you would make me promise to stay where ever I was and wait for you and I couldn't make that promise because I had to get back here." He told her. "I have to see her."

"Henry." Emma said with exasperation. "Where are you?"

"I'm in the alley beside Granny's." He told her.

"We are twenty minutes out of town now. Don't you dare move…do you hear me?" Emma said

"I'm just watching the people go by." He told her. "I haven't talked to anyone yet."

"Good." She replied. "Don't…you stay right where you are. Everyone is cursed Henry, no one will remember you and we don't know who the woman is that cast the curse to begin with. You stay out of site."

Henry started to answer but when he looked back up into the street his heart stopped. It was her.

"Henry? Do you hear me?" Emma asked again.

"She's here." He told her as he watched his mother walking towards Granny's. She was exactly like he remembered. He wanted so desperately to run to her. To throw his arms around her waist and tell her that he loved her.

"Henry" He heard Emma's voice over the phone. "You stay where you are…She doesn't remember you. We will figure out how to talk to her when I get there." Emma told him.

"I just want to see her for a minute." Henry told her.

"Henry no!" Emma told him. "She doesn't know she's cursed. She doesn't know that there is someone in the town who is a danger to you! She doesn't know you need to be protected. Just wait! We're almost there."

"I gotta go." He said as his Mom pulled the door to Granny's open.

"No Henry don't you dare hang up this…."

He hit the end button on his cell phone. "Sorry Mom." He said as he silenced his phone and walked towards the door to Granny's.

He pulled it open just in time to see a little boy wiggle out of the corner booth and run to his brunette mother.

"Mommy!" the boy said with excitement as he was caught up in her arms and pulled close to her the same way she used to do with him.

"Hi sweetheart!" She laughed and place a kiss to the little boy's head.

Mommy? Henry thought as he watching his mother smiling at another child. What the hell was going on?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you guys are enjoying so far! Please review!
> 
> I'm so glad that I have these fics to get me through the hiatus and now with all the death spoilers I feel like I am going crazy. I think I know who it's gonna be but I could be surprised. What do you guys think?
> 
> I would love to chat with you on tumblr about the show! Drop me a message! I'm thequeenstolemyheart there!


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks to all who read/followed/reviewed the last chapter!

The Enchanted Forest Six Months Ago

Regina rode along side Robin and Roland in silence. She hadn't said much since they'd left the palace instead allowing the young boy's chatter to entertain them on the way to see Jefferson.

He really was a sweet little boy. He reminded her so much of Henry at that age. Always ready for the next adventure and excited about what each new day would bring. It made her sad and caused her to miss her son terribly, but it was also somewhat comforting. She'd always enjoyed Henry's stories and views on life at that age. It was a time before they could be jaded by the real world. A time where imagination could take them anyplace they wanted to go and would let them be anything they wanted to be.

Regina hadn't really had that opportunity as a child. Her mother had been so strict about rules and acting like a proper lady, but in her dreams at night she would dream up fabulous adventures of far way lands and happy endings. She would dream of one day finding love.

In all of her dreams of the future and finding her love did she ever imagine she would lose it before it could even begin. In all of her dreams of family and children did she ever imagine she would lose her little boy. The person who meant most to her in the world.

It was nice to see that there were children who could still believe in happy endings and fairy tale love.

She hoped this young boy would hold onto that as long as he could. She hoped that the memories she had given her own son would give him back some of his innocence and wide eyed excitement for life. She wanted him to have it as long as he could.

"One day I'm going to be a knight!" Roland informed them.

"Be coming a knight takes a lot of practice." Robin told him.

"I know" He answered. "I got a wooden sword for my birthday Regina." the boy informed her. "And Daddy says he will teach me how to use it." He paused for a moment. "Then Mulan said that after my lessons with Daddy she will teach me the right way because Daddy should stick to his bow."

Regina laughed. "Well it certainly sounds like you are off to a good start. What do you plan to do when you become a knight?"

"Lots of stuff." Roland answered. "I'm gonna ride horses and fight dragons. I will even rescue princesses, but not because I want to marry them." The boy made a face. "Girls are gross!"

Robin chuckled at that assessment and looked at Regina. "I'm wondering at what age that opinion will change."

Regina smiled. "Sometime around puberty I would imagine."

"God help me when that time gets here." Robin stated.

"Do you know any knights Regina?" The boy asked her.

"I don't now" she told him "But I knew a few when I lived here before."

"Were they brave and fearless?" He asked.

"Honestly I don't know." she said. "I never really paid much attention."

"You didn't watch jousting at the palace?" Robin said surprised.

"I was never into it. I went of course because it was expected, but my mind was usually someplace else." She shared.

"Would you watch me if I were a knight Regina?" Roland asked her.

"Of course." She told him and smiled. "You would be a knight worth watching."

"Not boring like the other ones." Roland stated with a grin.

Regina laughed again. "Certainly not."

"Did you ever have a knight rescue you when you were queen?" The little boy asked her.

"I…" If only, Regina thought to herself. "No, I never had a knight run to my rescue."

Robin looked over to her at her tone of voice. He could hear the pain behind her words. He wondered why she would have needed a knight to rescue her.

"Well when I'm a knight you can count on me to rescue you. I won't ever let anyone lock you in a tower." The little boy chattered on.

Regina's lips turned up at his words. "That is very comforting Sir Roland, I will have to make you part of my royal guard."

Roland beamed at her. "I won't ever let any dragons or ogres get you either. You will be safe with me."

"What about trolls?" Robin asked his son amused. "Will you protect her from those as well?"

"Yep. I will make sure you are always safe." Roland answered.

"I will be proud to have such a brave knight fighting for me." Regina answered him then gestured to Robin. "This is it." She pointed to the small cabin just ahead of them and the little girl standing out front.

"Daddy" They heard Grace say and Regina watched as Jefferson walked out the front door.

"Hello Jefferson." Regina greeted sliding easily from her horse.

"What do you want?" He asked.

"A little chat is all…perhaps we would do better to have this talk in private." Regina turned to Grace who eyed her with suspicion. "Grace this is my friend Roland." she gestured to the small boy who had just been helped from his horse by his father. "Perhaps you wouldn't mind to take him inside and get him some water, it's been a long journey."

Grace looked to her father who nodded. Whatever reason Regina was here he didn't want his daughter involved.

The young girl walked to Roland to introduce herself. "Hello Roland, I'm Grace. Would you like to come inside with me? I just made some muffins…are you hungry?"

The little boy looked to his father to be sure it was ok and when he nodded Roland turned back to her. "Yes please."

Grace smiled and took his hand to lead him inside. The moment the door shut behind them Jefferson moved quickly and brought a sword to Regina's throat. Robin moved just as quickly pulling out his sword, but Regina held up her hand to stop him from advancing never taking her eyes from Jefferson.

"You don't have to worry Bandit…He's not going to kill me." She looked slightly amused.

"I will if you try to separate me from my daughter again Regina." He told her.

Regina scoffed and leaned into the blade a bit. "You don't have it in you Jefferson." When he only continued to glare at her she raised her hand and pushed the blade aside. "Besides this time it isn't me who plans to cast a curse that could keep you from your daughter."

"What are you talking about?" He asked her.

"I met someone recently who seems to be quite interested in casting another curse." she told him. "I'm hoping she's someone you may know from your travels."

"Who is she?" he asked lowering his sword completely. "Where is she from?"

"That's what I'm hoping you can tell me dear." Regina said. "All I know is that her name is Elphaba and she's…well…green."

Jefferson paled a bit as he looked at Regina. "Why would Elphaba be here?" He wanted to know.

"Again that's something I'm hoping you can tell me." Regina answered him.

Jefferson swallowed. "Elphaba is from Oz." He told her. "She has a pretty nasty reputation."

"I need more information dear if there is going to be any hope of stopping her." Regina told her.

Jefferson shook his head. "She hated the Wizard I know that. He was the ruler of Oz when I was there. He was somewhat of a shady bastard so I can't say that I blame her there." He let out a breath. "She had a sister too. Elphaba was nicknamed the Wicked Witch of the West and her sister was dubbed the Wicked Witch of the East."

Regina arched a brow. "Nearly as creative as The Evil Queen."

"Her sister's name was Nessa, but she was killed several years ago, a house fell on her is my understanding." Jefferson went on as if this statement wasn't strange in the slightest. "The young girl who accidently killed Nessa ended up with her Ruby Slippers. The shoes were said to hold a lot of power and Elphaba became obsessed with getting them back. She was at odds with another witch in the land named Glinda. I'm not really sure why but I heard that they were once friends. She is also rumored to have a son who travels with her, but I can't be sure about that."

Regina furrowed her brow. "So what could she possibly want here?"

Jefferson shook his head. "I have no idea. As far as I know her only enemies were in Oz."

"Jefferson, do you think it is possible that I somehow did something that would have made her angry…something I did here that could have affected someone she loved there?" Regina asked him. "She is angry with everyone here, but she seems to have a special vendetta against me."

Jefferson shook his head. "I don't know. Traveling between worlds wasn't really something that happened a lot in that land. Unless you knew Dorothy the girl who dropped a house on her sister…but the rumor is that she came from the land without magic."

Regina let out a breath. "I don't." she honestly couldn't connect what this woman could possibly want with the people in this land.

"What led you to believe that she is planning to cast the curse?" Jefferson wanted to know.

"We saw lights from a spell performed at my old castle. When I went to the site I recognized the ingredients. She was only missing the heart of the person she loves most which she claims to have." She told him.

"You don't think…I mean surely she wouldn't want revenge enough that she would kill her own son…as far as I know he is all she had." Jefferson told her.

The thought disturbed Regina to her core. Surely not, surely this woman no matter how evil couldn't take the life of her own son.

"If she is capable of doing that" Robin spoke for the first time. "Then what the hell else is she capable of?"

The three of them looked at each other wondering just what in the hell they were all in for.

XXXXXXXX

They arrived back at the castle later that evening. The ride back had been a quiet one. Regina and Robin had been lost in their own thoughts about what being at the mercy of this woman would mean.

Her reputation was ruthless and quite frankly Regina was nervous. Could she have killed her own son? There had to be another explanation. Surely no mother could want revenge that badly.

The thought once again made her shudder. She thought of her son and the love she felt for him. She would kill anyone in an instant that tried to do him harm. She couldn't imagine a mother being willing to kill their own child.

Perhaps Jefferson was wrong. He did say that she was rumored to have a son, not that she actually had one. Perhaps she didn't have one at all and the heart of the thing she loved most had come from someone else.

If she even had it…she could be bluffing. There was the small possibility that she was just trying to scare all of them. If she has it then why hasn't she used it yet?

Then again there was the possibility the woman was telling the truth and she was just biding her time. Perhaps she was giving all of them time to be terrified and think on what them all being under the curse again would really mean.

Roland had fallen asleep in front of Robin hours ago. Regina envied the boy. It had always been amazing to her when her own son had been his age how he could sleep through anything. Regina hadn't had a good nights sleep since they had arrived back here. Constant nightmares of her past and letting her son go plagued her in the night.

When they arrived back at the stables Regina quickly dismounted her horse then walked to Robin's to take the sleeping boy from him so he could get down as well. Regina took a deep breath when Roland snuggled against her, being reminded of all of the times her son would do the same. It felt so good to cuddle a child again even if it was only for a moment.

"Are you ok with him for a minute?" Robin asked. "I can tend to the horses if you are."

Regina nodded. "We'll be fine." she told him.

When he walked into the stables Regina moved to a bench to sit down with him. She settled him on her lap and he laid his head against her chest. The fact that the boy had not even been slightly roused from his sleep amused her. She smiled a bit when he cuddled into her chest.

How she missed this. There had been times when Henry was little that instead of immediately placing him in bed after he had fallen asleep on the couch or on a car ride home she would just sit and hold him marveling at the little boy who filled her heart with such love. She'd always loved holding him when he was sleeping. It was typically the only time of day he had been still enough to just sit and cuddle with her as long as she wanted.

She brought up a hand to rub the boy's back lightly. She could only hope that whatever this witch had planned for them she would allow this child to stay with his father. She could only hope that this boy would be well taken care of.

She knew Robin was worried. She could see it written all over his face. She wished she could reassure him but the truth was that she didn't see how they would stop this Elphaba from doing exactly as she pleased. If it was true and she did already have the heart needed to complete the curse then it was only a matter of time. She could cast it at any moment now.

Robin walked out of the stables after tending to the horses. He was terrified. He'd been uneasy every since they had talked with Jefferson. Regina's complete silence and furrowed brow on the way back told him that she was worried as well. What would become of them once this curse was cast? More importantly what would happen to his son?

The thought that he could be separated from his little boy terrified him. What if he was put with someone who didn't care for him? What if he was alone? He couldn't bare the thought of his son being alone and scared without him.

He looked up to find Regina sitting on a bench with Roland curled against her chest. She rubbed his back lightly as she looked down into his sleeping face.

The sight of it caused his heart to give a small leap. When his wife had been pregnant with Roland he'd often imagined what their lives would look like and this was exactly what he had pictured. He'd pictured her sitting with their child just as Regina was, looking down into his face with a small smile.

But that had not been in the cards for his family. His wife had died only moments after laying eyes on Roland. He had become a single father instantly. He and Roland were happy together, but he did often find himself missing her. It had been five years since she died. It had gotten easier over time, but he still mourned the fact that Roland would not have a mother. He wouldn't have a Mommy to cuddle him close and look down into his face with pure love.

He gave a small smiled when Regina glanced up at him. "He still out?" He asked.

She smiled "He's barely moved a muscle." she brushed the hair back from his face. "I envy children and their ability to sleep through any circumstance in life."

He could see on her face that she was enjoying this time holding his son so instead of taking him he sat down beside her. "I think it's because they fully trust the adults around them to keep away any danger." Robin answered. "I only wish it were possible all the time."

Regina sighed and looked up at Robin. She knew he was worried…beyond worried really. If the roles were reversed and she were in his situation with her son she wouldn't be able to function she would be so terrified of what may happen to him.

"Keep him close to you Robin." She told him. "Don't let him out of your site for a minute."

"You don't think we are going to be able to stop her." He said. It wasn't a question. He already knew her answer.

"If what she says is true and she does already have the heart all she has to do is add it to the spell. It could happen at any moment." she told him. She continued to rub Roland's back absently. Holing the little boy in her arms managed to calm her nerves and remind her of the only time in her life she had been truly happy.

"Is there something you can do from this end? That could ensure that I would be with my son?" He asked her.

Regina thought for a moment. "I suppose there is the possibility of a binding spell." She told him.

"What is that?" he asked.

"Well it is a spell that was previously used for a kind of protection. It was often performed on the children of royals if there was a threat to their safety. Many times royal children were in danger of kidnapping for ransom or just slaughter all together so they would have no claim to the throne. Often times they were assigned a guard. A binding spell would be done between the child and their guard so that the guard would always know of where the child was and the child couldn't be removed from the guards care unless given permission by the person who performed the spell in the first place." she looked at him. "I couldn't be sure that it would work in the cursed world, but it is possible. It is a powerful spell that many wizards have attempted to break."

"Would you be willing to perform it on me and Roland?" He asked her.

She gave him a small smile. "I could but I can't promise it will work Robin."

"It's a chance though." He said with some hope.

"It is a chance." she replied.

XXXXXXXX

Storybrook Present Day

Mommy? Henry stared on as he watched his mother cuddle another child close. He couldn't seem to move. He watched as his Mom carried the little boy to a booth to join the man that was sitting there.

This wasn't right. He thought to himself. She was looking at this kid the way she used to look at him. She was his Mom. He heard her laugh as the boy told her something he couldn't overhear.

He hadn't expected this. He'd expected to find his mother miserable and alone but as he looked on he saw that not only did she have a son but she was greeted by the people in Granny's. She had friends in this version of Storybrook.

He watched her laugh and lean in to place a kiss to the child's head. He blinked back tears he hadn't realized had started to form. That should be him with his Mom. It was him, once.

It made him realize even more then he had when he'd gotten his memories back the he wanted his Mom…He wanted her back. He had to get out of here. He needed to go back to the alley and wait for Emma. They had to break the curse. She had to remember who she was so she would look at him the way she was looking at this other child again.

He turned to walk back out the door only to run into a redhead who had just walked in.

"I'm sorry." He said looking up into her face. He didn't remember ever seeing her before.

"You should watch where you are going." The woman said to him.

"I know…I'm sorry I just was trying to find my Mom." He told her.

The woman raised a brow. "I don't recall ever seeing you around here before." She studied him with curious eyes.

"My Mom and I are visiting." He answered feeling uneasy. "She and I split up and I was supposed to meet her here if I couldn't' find her." He lied knowing that Emma would be there in a matter of minutes.

"You should never wander to far away from your parents." The woman told him. "You never know who may mean you harm."

Henry swallowed. He felt uneasy with this woman. He looked back to the booth his mother was sitting in. She may not know who he was, but she would still protect him wouldn't she?

"Sheriff." The woman called out right then. Henry blinked when he saw the man his Mom was sitting with look their way. "This young boy seems to have been separated from his mother." The woman said.

The man in the booth stood and walked towards Henry. "Well we can't have that can we." The man looked down at Henry with a friendly smile. "Where was your mother when you saw her last son?"

"Umm…we were just kind of exploring the town." he tried to think up a lie. "She went into a store, but I wanted to play video games so I went to the arcade but they weren't open yet. My Mom told me to meet her here when I used all my quarters."

"So you're not lost after all, just a bit early." The man smiled at him.

"Yes sir" Henry answered.

"Well you are welcome to come and wait with my family if you would like." The sheriff told him.

Henry considered refusing but when he looked back to the door to see the redhead still looking at him curiously he thought it better to simply get away from her. He nodded. "Thank you."

The man laid a hand on his shoulder. "Sure thing. I'm Robin by the way." He told him as they walked to the table. "This is my wife Regina and our son Roland." He gestured to his Mom and the little boy.

Henry blinked when his Mom turned to look at him with a smile on her face. "Hi." Was all he managed to say.

"Hello" She answered him.

"This young man was supposed to meet his mother here, but he ended up being a bit early. I told him he was welcome to wait with us." Robin slid into the booth and Henry sat down beside him. "I don't believe I got your name."

He cleared his throat. "Henry." He told them.

"Hello Henry" His Mom answered him. She furrowed her brow at him. "Have you visited Storybrook before?" She asked. "I feel as if I've seen you somewhere."

Hope blossomed in Henry's heart. She remembered him…well sort of remembered him. He looked familiar at least. That was a good sign.

"No this is my first time here." He decided to lie just in case the redhead was still lurking somewhere listening.

"Hmm…" She paused still studying his face. "I could swear I've seen you before."

He smiled thrilled that she at least recognized him. "Maybe I just have one of those faces." He told her.

She smiled back at him. "Maybe." She agreed.

"How old are you Henry?" The little boy spoke up for the first time.

"Um…I'm twelve." He told him and cleared his throat. "How about you?"

"I'm five." The boy held up five fingers to let Henry know exactly how many that was. "Mommy says that I'm growing up to fast."

Henry felt a surge of jealousy hearing the boy call his Mom, Mommy. It only increased when Regina pulled the boy to her side and placed a kiss to his head. "Way to fast." she answered with a smile.

"Where do you live Henry?" The little boy asked as he cuddled into his Mom.

"New York." Henry said shortly. He didn't like this. He didn't like watching his Mom cuddle another child. She's not your Mom! His mind cried out to little boy cuddled into her side. She's mine!

"What brings you to Storybrook?" Robin asked from beside him.

Crap…he hadn't thought of a cover story…an actual reason for being there. Luckily he was saved when he heard the diner door open and looked up to see Emma walk in.

"Mom!" He waved feeling relief wash over him.

He saw relief flood her features when she saw him again. "The arcade was closed." He said quickly hoping she wouldn't blow his cover story. "So I got here a little early."

Emma cleared her throat as she walked as calmly as possible to the table. She felt relief flood every part of her body as she looked at her son in one piece…of course that wasn't going to stop her from killing him later. She still didn't feel able to speak.

"This is the sheriff, Robin" Henry told her. "His wife Regina" Henry gestured to the woman who they both knew was actually his mother. "And their…" Henry hesitated a moment not even wanting to say the word. "Their son Roland."

Emma swallowed surprised. She had not expected to find Regina married with a kid in this version of Storybrook.

She cleared her throat. "Hello…I'm Emma Swan." She smiled. "I'm this guy's Mom." she gestured to Henry.

"Hello Emma." Robin extended a hand to her and she took it. "Nice to have you both in town. What brings you here?" he asked.

Emma smiled and looked down to Regina for a moment who was looking at her curiously. "Oh, um, I'm actually a private investigator and I'm looking for someone I believe to be in the area."

"A criminal?" Robin asked.

She smiled. "No nothing like that. It's the daughter of a client who seems to have fallen in love over then internet and took off to meet him." She paused. "Actually perhaps you can help me though. I'm wondering who is the mayor of Storybrook?" She thought perhaps finding that out would help her figure out who cast the curse.

Robin smiled proudly. "You're looking at her." He gestured to Regina who smiled.

So much for that idea Emma thought wondering why the woman who cast the curse wouldn't have put herself in charge, but it did give her another idea on how to get Regina alone for a bit.

"Oh fantastic" Emma said. "I was actually wondering if perhaps I could pick your brain a bit…about the girl I'm looking for. After all who would know the town better then the mayor?"

Regina furrowed her brow. "Well I can't say that I've seen anyone new around town lately, I'm not sure how much help I would be."

"Probably more then you know…I don't really want to ask a lot of questions around town. The girl's father is in politics and we want to keep things as quiet as possible." Emma told her. "We are actually hoping maybe you can tell us something about the man she's with. If I could meet with you later privately I would really appreciate it."

Regina nodded. "You can call my office to see when I have some time available. My day today is full of meetings, but I believe I have some time tomorrow."

Emma smiled "Great!" She looked back to Henry who looked a little crestfallen that he wouldn't be getting his mother back today. "Henry, why don't we check into renting us a room?"

Henry nodded. "Ok." Henry looked directly at his brunette mother. "It was nice talking to you."

She smiled back at him. "You too Henry." She watched as the two of them began to walk away. "Ms. Swan" She called out and Emma turned back around. "Have you visited the town before? You and your son look so familiar to me, but I can't place it."

Emma smiled "Can't say that we have. Perhaps we saw each other somewhere else at some point."

Regina smiled. "Maybe."

XXXXXXXX

"This is a disaster!" Henry said as they walked into the hotel room.

"Henry us having to wait until tomorrow to see your Mom again isn't the end of the world." Emma answered him.

"I'm not talking about that." Henry said shortly. "I'm talking about her having a family…another kid."

Emma scrunched up her face. "So you would prefer for her to be miserable and alone?"

Henry let out a breath. "No…It's just…I just." He shook his head. "I don't know…she used to look at me like she was looking at that kid. She's my Mom, not his."

"Henry, she will look at you like that again as soon as she gets her memories back." Emma told him.

"What if she doesn't?" Henry wanted to know. "What if she likes this life better? She just seems so happy." He said as he sat down on the bed.

"A cursed happy isn't a real happy." Emma told him. "I think you and I know that better then anyone. Our false memories weren't real…they were wonderful and made us happy at the time, but we forgot about everyone else we love, people that we would never want to give up."

Henry looked down at his shoes. "I was so mean to her. For so long I was mean to her. I told her she wasn't my Mom I said horrible things to her. Maybe she really is happier in this life, with this kid that adores her."

"Henry." Emma crouched down so she could look him in the eye. "Regina doesn't blame you for any of that. She knows you were angry with her for lying and she was very sorry for what she put you through. One thing I learned when I was in Neverland with her was that she loves you more then anything in this world. She would never choose to be cursed with no memory of you…no matter how good her life may seem. She would want her son back. You mean to much to her. She would never want to be without you Henry."

Henry looked back up into her eyes. "You think so?"

"I know so." Emma answered him.

He sniffed. "Where's Hook?"

"I sent him to see if the old well is still there. It seems to be the center hub of magic here in Storybrook. If we are going to break the curse I'm guessing we will have to do it there…I just don't know how yet."

"Mom will…when she gets her memories back. She'll know what to do." Henry told her.

"I hope so." She smiled at him before shifting to sit next to him on the bed. "Did you see anyone else? My parents?" She asked him.

Henry shook his head. "No just Mom, I saw Archie on the street and Ruby was serving tables." Henry bit his lip. "There was a woman though…a redhead, someone I've never seen before. She kind of gave me the creeps."

"What did she say?" Emma asked.

"Nothing really…she just looked at me strangely. I don't know who she was." He told her.

"How about you stay away from this woman until the curse is broken and we have your Mom back and protecting you?" Emma asked.

"I won't argue with that." Henry answered her. "So what do we do now?"

"We wait until Hook gets back, then we go from there. I think it would be best just to act as if we are tourists, just passing through."

Henry nodded. "So do you think it will work? Do you think we can get Mom to drink the potion?"

"We have to." Emma answered.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you guys are enjoying the story! I'm using a lot of references from the book Wicked, when going in to Elphaba's back story, but obviously adding my own twists. (#1 twist is that she doesn't die lol). I actually adore the character of Elphie so I'm super excited to be writing her! :)
> 
> Please Review and tell me how you like the story so far!
> 
> Come over to Tumblr and say hi! I'm thequeenstolemyheart there as well!


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok to answer a few questions. I really did consider changing Regina/Robin/Roland's names, but I decided against it simply to make it a bit easier for myself. When I was still writing EC a lot I had two fics going at once. In one I used the name David and in the other James and I got the two of them confused constantly. I thought this may help to not have as many errors.
> 
> You are not going to see a lot of character/relationship development in FTL because most of that is going to happen in Storybrook. This is a slow burn fic. What you are seeing in FTL is a build up to Elphie casting the curse. Once we get to that point I am going to move from flashing back to our main group and have some flashbacks to Elphie and her back story.
> 
> Hope this helps and if you have any more questions please feel free to ask!

Enchanted Forest Six Months Ago

"It's just that simple?" Robin asked still holding his son.

Regina smiled. "Yes, just a simple chant while you're holding on to each other is all it takes." She told him as she put the book away.

He set Roland down when he wiggled and the boy picked up his sword and began to play. "You don't really think it will work do you?" Robin asked.

Regina let out a sigh. It was best to be honest with him. "When the curse was in effect there was no magic in Storybrook." She told him. "I don't know that without magic it will do any good, but if magic is there or were to return somehow…"

"You mean if the curse breaks, which seems to have zero chance of happening." Robin said.

Regina looked at him in sympathy. "I know it isn't what you want to hear."

"You're right it's not." He told her. "Could you just pretend everything will be alright to help ease my mind?" He asked only half joking.

She smiled. "Everything will be alright."

He smiled wryly at her. "Thanks."

Her lips turned up a bit. "That didn't help at all did it?"

"No, but thanks for it anyway." He told her. "Are you worried? About yourself I mean? That witch does seem to have it out for you."

Regina shook her head. "I'm not really worried about myself. I really have nothing left to lose."

Robin looked at her for a moment. "What was your son like?" He asked.

Regina smiled. "A lot like Roland when he was younger. He was always so full of energy and looking for adventure. He brought so much love into my life. I didn't realize it was possible to love someone as much as I love him."

Robin nodded. "I understand that. There is nothing quite like the love a parent feels for their child."

"No there isn't." Regina agreed. "When he got older and starting figuring things out…about the curse and who I was he pulled away. He has such a definite distinction of right and wrong. He was so angry with me for so long."

Robin looked at the sadness on her face. "I guess most children have a very black and white view of the world. No real gray area."

Regina nodded. "You're either good or evil…there's not a lot of middle ground." She shook her head. "Things were changing though, before we came back I thought for a moment I could have him back in my life, but then I had to let him go so he could be happy."

"That was a brave thing you did Regina." He told her.

She gave him a small smile. "I hope he's happy. He has such a good heart, so pure and strong. Sometimes I wonder how it's possible that a raised such a fantastic kid."

Robin smiled and placed a hand on her arm. "I can see how it's possible." He told her with a small smile.

She blinked at him for a moment before smiling. She wasn't used to compliments. "Thank you." She said quietly.

"Thank you for doing this for my son and I. Even if it doesn't work I appreciate you trying." He told her.

"You're welcome."

XXXXXXXX

Elphaba waked out of the castle to the fire in the clearing, tonight was the night it would begin. She smiled a bit knowing that very soon she would get everything she wanted. No one quite knew her plans, this wasn't about the curse…that was simply a means to an end. It was about what would come after. She'd kept careful watch and knew that the timing was right.

She'd been excited to finally come face to face with the feared Evil Queen two nights before. She felt a shiver of anticipation over what was to come. Getting back at Regina was a side benefit of this curse. When it was all said and done the woman would know what t truly was to lose everything, just as she had.

Regina wasn't the only person she had plans for. It was really a shame that The Dark One was dead, she would have happily made him pay for his many sins, but no matter, there was still his son who could pay for him. No it wasn't just about the curse. All of their lives were about to change in a dramatic way, but the curse wasn't her final plan. It was just the icing on the cake if you will.

Then there was the lovely Snow White, daughter of the King and the champion do gooder. She would get what she wanted from all of them and before it was all over.

She walked up to the fire and held up the box in her hand. This was going to be the hardest part, letting go of the heart of her beloved son. She'd held on to it long after his death. She kept it with her as it was the only thing of her old life worth holding on to. She'd truly lost everything. Now anger and rage had overtaken her at the course of events that had brought her to this moment.

"I love you Liir." She murmured. "Very soon, I will avenge your death."

A tear rolled down her cheek as she threw his heart into the fire where the curse was burning. She watched as the smoke rose ready to take with it an entire land.

She gave a hint of a smile as she watched before vanishing into a puff of smoke.

XXXXXXXX

They heard it before they saw it. Regina and Robin turned to see the smoke rise into the sky.

"It's here." Regina said quietly.

"Roland!" Robin ran across the courtyard and picked up his son. "What do we do Regina?"

She looked back and saw the panic in his eyes as he held his son close. "We wait." she told him.

"Daddy what is that?" The little boy asked obviously afraid. Robin had no answer.

Regina looked at the little boy and wanted to do her best to ease the fear from his face. "It's something that is going to take us to another world." She told him. "To the place where my son and I used to live."

"Is it a good world?" He wanted to know.

She gave him a small smile. He would remember none of this in a few minutes. "It is, I loved it there." There was no point in telling him that their lives may not be good there. She didn't want him to spend the last few moments here in fear.

"Regina!" She heard her name called by Snow and turned. "Regina! It's the curse!"

"I know." She told her attempting to get the panicked girl to stop in front of Roland. "I'll be right there Snow." She turned back to look at Robin and Roland. She could see the fear in Robin's eyes that she knew would be reflected in her own if she were in his position. She turned her attention to the little boy who still looked worried. She walked to him and placed a hand on his face. "I will see you soon Sir Roland." she leaned in and placed a gentle kiss to his cheek before turning to the boys father. She placed a hand on his arm in an attempt to comfort him but there were no words to be said. The curse was coming and it was going to do what it would.

She gave him a soft smile of encouragement before turning and walking towards Snow and Charming and the rest of the group that had gathered in the court yard.

"Regina is there no way to stop it?" Charming asked.

"There isn't. I think we all know from before there isn't, it is unstoppable." Regina told him.

He turned to place an arm around Snow as they all watched the curse move closer. The group jumped collectively when the orange plume of smoke appeared in the courtyard and they once again found themselves staring at the green woman.

"How cozy." She told purred as she looked at the group huddled together. "It's so sweet that you would want to spend your final moments here all together."

Charming, a hero right through to the end decided in that moment to charge the woman with his sword.

She smirked an threw up a hand freezing him in place. "Oh my dear." She tsked. "Always acting before thinking it through. You didn't really think that would do anything did you?" The woman turned her attention to Snow. "Snow White at last we meet." she smiled. "I look forward to getting to know you better in the next few months." Elphaba looked down at Snow's stomach for a moment. "I can't wait to meet your child." She told her.

Regina looked from the woman to Snow. She didn't like the way she was looking at her. It was like an animal circling it's prey. They all lost their balance as the earth seemed to shake and the curse began to seep over the castle walls. Regina ran to Snow the enchantment she'd just used on Robin ringing in her memory.

"Snow!" She called to her as she got closer. "Take my hand!"

"Regina she wants my baby!" Snow said as Regina grabbed her hand. "She was looking at…Regina she can't get my baby!"

"I know." She'd wondered if Snow had seen the look in the woman's eyes when she looked at her stomach and it appeared that her former step daughter had come to the same conclusion she had.

Snow watched as Regina chanted something in a language that made no since to her. She blinked as magic surrounded them. "What was that?" She asked still clinging to Regina's hand.

"A long shot." Regina told her. The earth shook again and Regina and Snow were knocked off their feet.

"Regina I'm sacred." Snow told her still desperately clinging to her hand. In the cursed world her and her child would be at the mercy of this woman.

In an uncharacteristic move Regina wrapped an arm around Snow as the curse began to overtake all of the people around them. She pulled her completely into her arms as it crept closer. "It will be over in a minute." She tried to reassure knowing that was far from the truth. This part would be over in a moment, but the real curse was just beginning.

XXXXXXXX

Storybrook Present Day

"Six months?" Emma asked the man standing in front of her. "You just thought of telling me this now?"

Hook shrugged. "We were sort of preoccupied with other things…you just getting your memory back and then your panic to find Henry."

"Still you might have mentioned that they have been cursed for six months!" Emma told him. "What the hell took you so long?!" She wanted to know.

"Well love, it's like I told you, the fairies used a bit of experimental magic to get me back here. Things didn't exactly go as planned." He told her.

"So where were you?" Henry wanted to know.

"Wonderland." He told them and shuddered. "Horrid place."

"You were in Wonderland?!" Henry asked with some excitement. "How did you get here?"

"Well believe it or not it is quite difficult to get to the land without magic from any of the lands in our world. There are only a few portals that work here." He shook his head. "The only one that will work from Wonderland is the one that is dug by the White Rabbit. It took me months to find the bastard and nearly as long to convince him to help."

"Why wouldn't he want to help you?" Henry wanted to know.

"Well I made the mistake of mentioning that I had been to Wonderland before…" Hook started.

"You mentioned Cora." Emma finished for him.

Hook nodded. "So naturally he assumed I was there for some evil deed rather then to actually help a whole world. It took a while to convince him."

Emma sighed. "Well at least we know the well is here although I still have no idea how to make it work to bring back everyone's memories."

"Mom will." Henry told her. "I know she will."

Emma smiled at her son. "I hope you're right."

XXXXXXXX

Regina walked into the office the next morning feeling tired. She hadn't slept well the night before. She'd been plagued with strange dreams that she couldn't quite remember when she woke up.

She hadn't felt right since the morning before when she'd met the young boy at the diner. There had been something about him. Something familiar, as if she'd seen him before, but couldn't' place where it had been. After waking up several times in the night she'd finally given up on sleep and decided to come to the office early. She'd woken Robin before she left asking him to get Roland up and ready for school that morning.

She wasn't sure why but she couldn't seem to shake this feeling. It was almost a sense of foreboding, something she couldn't' explain. Well…at least she would get some paperwork done.

She made her way to her desk and looked down at her calendar for the day. She saw where here secretary had penciled in Emma Swan at three o'clock. It was her only meeting of the day so it did appear she would have some peace and quiet for a while.

She let out a breath as she sat down. She wished she had been able to rest more the night before. She placed her head in her hands and thought back trying to remember the strange dreams that had somehow left her feeling devastated and alone when she woke. She'd turned into Robin's arms seeking comfort there that he was more then willing to offer.

He always had a way of making her feel safe.

She'd met him in college. She'd been a Political Science major and he had studied Criminal Justice. She fallen madly in love with him and he with her. It had been a whirlwind romance that most thought wouldn't last. She'd feared when they graduated that he wouldn't want to come back to the small town she'd been raised in, but instead he'd surprised her just before graduation with a marriage proposal.

The years they had spent married to each other had been blissful. Sure they had their fights, but the love she felt for him now was just a strong as it had been then…stronger really. They'd grown together and made a family.

They'd waited several years before having children. Regina had wanted to establish herself and was proud to say that she was the youngest mayor elected to Storybrook. After she'd been elected mayor and Robin had been made sheriff they'd decided it was time to start their family. The day Roland had been born was the happiest day of her life…along with her wedding day. Her little boy was the light of her life.

Her mother had died when she was very young and her father while she was away at school. He'd had a heart attack and Regina had been devastated. It had been Robin who helped her through it. She truly had been one of the lucky ones. She'd found the man of her dreams at a young age.

Her father had left her the home they currently lived in. It had been her childhood home and Regina love being able to make memories there with her own family. She looked down at the picture of her husband and son she kept on her desk. They were so beautiful she thought to herself.

It made the feelings she'd started having the day before all the more confusing. Seeing the boy in the diner at Granny's…she couldn't explain it…she suddenly felt as if something was missing. It was as if something wasn't right.

She shook her head. Of course nothing was missing. She had the family she'd always dreamed of. How could anything possibly be missing?

She opened her desk drawer and pulled out a bottle of aspirin. The headache that was forming behind her eyes was not a good sign. She was prone to migraines and she really hoped this wasn't the start of one coming on. She popped a couple of the pills into her mouth and took a drink of water. She might as well get some work done. She pulled the stack of reports to her and settled in for what could end up being a long day.

XXXXXXXX

"Ok Henry" Emma poured the potion into the cup of coffee and sloshed it around a bit. They had stopped at Granny's and ordered hot chocolate for themselves and Regina's regular. It was the perfect opportunity to get her to drink the potion. "Let me do the talking."

"Your really bad at this kind of thing Mom. I think you should let me get her to drink it. She's gonna think it's weird that you thought to bring her coffee." Henry told her.

Emma rolled her eyes. "She's not going to think it's weird Henry, she will think it's thoughtful."

"She's gonna think it's weird." He told her. "I know my Mom."

"Kid, she isn't herself here remember…she's pod Regina ok? It will be fine." She told him. She picked up the fake file that she had brought with her complete with false information about the "girl" she was looking for.

"You're gonna mess it up." Henry shook his head. "We only have one shot at this." He reminded her.

"You don't think I know that?!" She said getting frustrated. "I'm sure your answer is to just go in there and announce 'surprise I'm you kid' the way you did with me."

"Worked didn't it?" He asked.

"Henry, just let me do the talking ok?" She said with some finality.

Henry shrugged. He wasn't agreeing to anything.

When they walked through the door of City Hall Henry couldn't help but feel excited at the prospect of seeing his Mom again. He couldn't wait until she got her memory back so he could hug her. He just wanted to feel her put her arms around him the way she used to do.

"We're here to see Mayor Mills." Emma told the assistant at the desk. "Emma Swan."

The assistant nodded. "Yes Mayor Mills is expecting you, she said to go on ahead in when you arrived."

Emma blinked. Well that was different, before Regina had always made her wait at least fifteen minutes for no good reason other then to piss her off of course.

She made her way to the door with the tray of cups in her hand. She'd had Ruby write the names on the cups so she wouldn't get them mixed up. The last thing that needed to happen was for her or Henry to drink the potion by accident.

She gave a quick knock to the door before poking her head in. "Mayor Mills?" Emma asked.

Regina looked up from her desk and gave a tight smile. He head was still pounding and she was nearly certain that this was indeed the start of a migraine. "Yes Ms Swan, come on in."

Emma pushed the door open and started to speak, but Henry grabbed the cup from the tray and walked it over to Regina. "Hi Regina, Mom and I stopped to pick up some hot chocolate and I had the idea to order you your regular as a thanks for letting me sit with you guys yesterday."

Emma wanted to strangle her offspring until she saw Regina smile. "Well that was very sweet of you Henry." She took the cup from him. "Thank you." She held the cup a little closer to her face and let the smell of the coffee flood her senses. "I could actually use a cup of coffee right now." She told him.

"Rough day?" Henry asked.

Regina smiled a little amused at him. "It hasn't been horrible but I'm afraid I didn't get much sleep last night." She told him. "I think this is just what the doctor ordered though." She took a drink nearly moaning at the pleasure of the warm liquid moving down her throat.

Henry stood staring at her for a minute as if he were expecting something to happen. She smiled at him. "Have you enjoyed your visit to Storybrook so far?" She asked.

Henry smiled a little distractedly. Why wasn't anything happening? "Yeah…I like the playground." He told her.

Regina smiled. "And were you ever able to make it to the arcade? I'm sure you were disappointed yesterday that it wasn't open yet." She picked up her coffee and took another sip.

Maybe she had to drink it all. Henry thought to himself. "Yeah, um I think I'll probably go there later."

She smiled at him again. "You'll have to tell me what you think of it." She told him. "I'm not sure if it can compare to the ones in New York, but my son seems to like it."

Henry smiled a little sadly again to hear her call another child her son. "I'm sure it will be great." He told her.

"Henry" Emma said. "Why don't you have a seat on the sofa and play your DS while I talk to the Mayor." If Henry continued to look at Regina as if her were expecting something to happen she feared she may catch on. They needed her to drink the rest of that potion.

Henry let out a breath. "Ok" He told her and moved to the couch still watching Regina from the corner of his eye.

Emma smiled at Regina as she sat in front of her desk. "Here's the file I have on the guy this girl ran away with. We don't have a lot of information, just his screen name and pictures. I have a computer guy working on hacking the system to get me a name. Right now we only know she came to this area."

Regina took another drink of her coffee before taking the file from Emma. She opened it and began looking over the information. "I can't say that I recognize him." she told her and moved the picture on top. She looked up at Emma amused. "His screen name was love-machine?"

Emma smiled as she watched Regina take another sip of her coffee. Any time now potion…any time. "Original huh?" Emma gave a half laugh. "The girl knows how to pick them it would seem."

"I'm sorry Ms Swan, but I can't say that I recognize him, if you come back once you have a name perhaps I could help you then." Regina told her. She took another sip of her coffee then raised a hand to her temple as her head began to pound.

"That's ok." Emma answered her. "It was a long shot." she glanced around trying to find a reason to hang around until Regina finished her coffee. She cleared her throat. "How long have you been Mayor?" She asked.

Regina gave a tight smile. "This is my second term."

"Second?" Emma asked "Wow, you must have been pretty young when you started."

Regina took the final drink of her coffee and placed the cup aside. "I was." she answered. "I was twenty eight." She pinched the bridge of her nose as her vision began to blur.

Emma cleared her throat. "Are you ok?"

Regina gave a tight smile and nodded. "I've been fighting off a head ache all day. I've been prone to occasional migraines."

"Oh, sorry to hear that." She looked back to Henry unsure what to do next. They both looked up when the sheriff walked into the room followed by the little boy.

"Hi Mommy" The boy greeted running behind the desk to hug his mother. Emma watched as Regina smiled and brought an arm up to hug her son.

Emma looked at a scowling Henry. If Regina's memories came back now it would certainly raise some questions with her "husband."

"I'm sorry." He apologized quickly. "I didn't realize you had a meeting."

Regina looked up to Robin and squinted a bit as the light was hurting her eyes. "It's ok dear, we were just finishing up." Regina told him.

"Regina" Robin moved to her side. "Are you ok?" Her skin had paled considerably.

"I'm fine." she shook her head. "I believe I have a migraine coming on is all."

"We should go." Emma stated. "Thank you for your time Mayor Mills, I'll be in touch."

Regina nodded as the pain in her head increased. "Thank you Ms. Swan, I'm sorry about this." Regina was rarely sick and never showed weakness, but the sudden head ache hit her hard.

Emma watched as a concerned Robin helped her from her chair. "It's not problem, like I said I'll be in touch."

"Mom…" Henry whispered as she grabbed his coat and ushered him outside. "We can't leave…did she even finish her coffee? What happens if she remembers?"

"She finished it Henry and us hanging around while she is on the verge of a migraine would look strange." Emma told him.

"She drank it all?" Henry questioned.

"Yes." Emma answered.

"So why isn't it working?" Henry wanted to know. "Why isn't she remembering?"

Emma shook her head. "I don't know Henry…maybe there is like some kinda expiration date on magic potions." Emma told him.

"Or maybe there's just no magic here." Henry answered. "What are we gonna do?! That potion was out only shot."

Emma looked down at his worried expression. "Try not to worry kid, we'll just go back to the hotel and regroup. We'll figure it out."

"How?!" Henry wanted to know. His eyes were welling up with tears.

Emma wished she had an answer for him. "I don't know…plan B"

"What is plan B?" He asked.

"Um…I hold her down while you tackle her with true loves kiss." she tried hoping to see him smile.

"True loves kiss won't work if she doesn't even remember me." He looked down at his shoes.

"Hey kid," Emma tilted up his chin to look at her. "We'll think of something…we always do"

XXXXXXXX

Regina rolled over as Robin walked into the bedroom shielding her eyes from the light that filtered in.

"Did you get Roland into bed ok?" Regina asked him.

"Yes. He says I'm not as good of a storyteller as you are, but I promised him that you would tuck him in tomorrow night." Robin told her as he stripped down to his boxers for bed.

"Maybe I should just go and give him a kiss goodnight." Regina said moving to get out of the bed.

Robin laid a hand on her arm. "He's fine Regina he knows you're not feeling well and he was nearly asleep before I left the room."

Regina sighed and laid back. "I don't like not tucking him in at night."

Robin laid down beside her and placed a light kiss to her forehead. "I know, but one night isn't going to hurt. You just worry about getting your rest and feeling better."

She sighed as she looked at him in the moonlight that filtered into the room. She very often felt as if she were the luckiest woman on the planet. She smiled softly. "Thank you for taking care of me tonight."

He lifted his hand to her hair. "I will always take care of you."

She rolled into his chest and allowed herself to be soothed by the feel of his hand rubbing her back. Perhaps a good night's sleep would help her shake the migraine that had plagued her most of the day.

XXXXXXXX

Emma stepped out of the room after getting Henry to sleep. She shut the door quietly then leaned back against it. She was doing her best to stay upbeat for Henry but she was worried. Why hadn't the potion worked? What in the hell were they supposed to do now?

She let out a groan and slid down the door to sit on the floor. She glanced up when Hook opened the door of his room.

"I thought I heard someone out here." He said to her.

Emma said nothing but continued to look at him.

He walked too her and sat down on the floor next to her. "Feeling a little overwhelmed?"

Emma shook her head. "What are we going to do? We were completely dependent on the potion working and Regina getting her memories back."

Hook stared straight ahead. "Perhaps there has to be magic for the potion to work." He mused.

"And the only way to get magic to work is for Regina to remember who she is." Emma said. "I sure the hell don't know how to do it."

"You have magic though Emma, we just need to do a bit of research see what we can find out. Perhaps we could visit Gold's old shop. I'm sure there's something that will tell us something there." Hook told her.

"Gold's dead." Emma stated. "Is his shop even still there."

Hook nodded. "It is, but now it's ran by a redheaded woman. I did a little exploring around town while you and Henry were trying to uncurse Regina."

Emma furrowed her brow. "Henry said that he saw a redheaded woman at the diner that gave him the creeps. Is that the woman who cast the curse?"

"I'm not sure, I never actually saw the woman in the Enchanted Forest." Hook told her. "The rumor is that she was green."

"Green" Emma looked at him in disbelief. "As in Wicked Witch of the West green?"

"Yes, I believe that is what they called her come to think of it." Hook answered.

"Of course she's the Wicked Witch." Emma said rolling her eyes. "Who the hell else would she be?" Emma went back in her mind wondering just when in the hell her life had taken this insane turn. Wicked Witches, Evil Queens, Rumpelstitskin, Captain Hook, Snow White…What was next? Voldemort?

"How's the lad doing?" Hook asked her.

"He's upset. He really thought he was going to get Regina back today. He was devastated when it didn't work." She told him.

"How are you holding up with all of this?" Hook wanted to know.

Emma sighed and looked at him. "It's strange, having two lifetimes in your head." She shook her head. "Even though I know that the memories of keeping Henry weren't real…they are still there." she explained. "They still feel real. I can't begin to explain how devastating it his to know that they're not."

Hook laid his hand on Emma's shoulder. "I'm sorry I had to wake you up from that. I'm sorry you couldn't just stay happy."

Emma looked back up at him. "But it wasn't a real happy was it?"

Hook shook his head. "I don't know, sometimes I think an imaginary life would be better…a fake happy is better then being miserable I suppose." Emma took a deep breath and stared ahead of her again. "It's not just the memories and the potion not working today is it?" Hook asked her. "Something else is bothering you."

"Henry and I walked around town today, looking for people we know. We saw everyone…Archie, Ruby, Granny, My father, Belle, I even caught a glimpse of Neal leaving The Rabbit Hole." She told him.

"Well at least you know they are ok." Hook stated.

"I didn't see my mother." Emma looked at him. "I looked everywhere, her old apartment, the school. We sat in Granny's nearly two hours waiting for her to show up…she never did."

Hook took her hand into his. "I'm sure she's fine Emma, We'll find her."

Emma nodded but was far from convinced. "I hope you're right."

XXXXXXXX

Regina hummed as she rocked her sweet baby boy to sleep. It was so peaceful to hold a sleeping baby. She never knew she could love this much.

"Roland, I never want you to forget how much Mommy loves you." She whispered to the child.

She continued to hum as she heard a strange voice echo in her head…"I can promise you now that before the end of this you will know what it's like to have all you've ever dreamed of…and you will know what it is to lose it."

Regina looked around trying to see where the voice was coming from, when she saw nothing she stood and placed Roland into his bed. She continued to hear the strange laugh come from all around her. She began to feel panicked and ran back to the bed to pick her son back up and flee from the room but when she got to the bed he was gone.

"Roland!?" she cried out in panic as she frantically searched the room.

She found herself in the diner suddenly still frantically searching for her little boy, but everyone there were like statues, no one moved except her.

"Roland!" She looked around at the motionless faces. "Someone please help me find my son!" She turned to run out of the diner and found herself facing the boy she'd met two days before.

"I'm right here Mom." he told her smiling.

"I…" She paused looking at the boy. "I'm looking for my son." She told him again.

"I am your son." He told her.

She suddenly found herself on the edge of town, tears rolling down her cheeks as she told her son goodbye. She held him close to her and when she pulled back it was Henry's face she saw.

"Henry?" She heard herself say.

"Henry!" Regina sat up in bed covered in sweat and tears rolling down her face. She couldn't seem to catch her breath. She glanced over with wide eyes as the man next to her sat up and placed a hand on her back.

"Bad dream?" he asked calmly obviously attempting to soothe her with the hand on her back.

She blinked at him in near shock. Robin…her husband…except that he wasn't her husband at all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok, I'm not gonna lie, I was pretty excited about this chapter. I really hope you all liked it. I thought it would be good to go into Regina's cursed memories a bit. Please leave me a review and tell me what you thought.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to everyone who read, followed and reviewed the last chapter. Sorry for the delay in getting this one out…real life sometimes gets in the way.

Regina stared at Robin with wide eyes. This wasn't her husband. She wasn't Mrs. Locksley. They hadn't fallen in love in college, they hadn't spent ten years married to each other and Roland wasn't…oh God…Roland wasn't her little boy.

It had all been a lie.

Henry…Henry was here…he was in Storybrook. Her son, she thought she'd never see him again, but he's here.

Her heart pounded in her ears as Robin slipped an arm around her. "Hey, it's ok. It was just a dream." He placed a kiss to the side of her head.

But it wasn't a dream. The blissful life they had spent together was all a lie. She glanced at the clock on the bed side table…5:30.

Regina threw back the covers and climbed out of bed. She couldn't talk…she couldn't think. Her head was a blur of memories, both real and imagined. The dream still swirled in her mind. Roland had disappeared. She'd been desperate to find him, but someone took him away.

"Regina?"

She ran from the room and made her way to Roland's door, pushing it open the moment she got there. She took a breath of relief when she saw him laying in his bed. She sagged against the door frame attempting to calm her breathing. He was here, he was ok.

Henry, she had to find Henry.

She jumped when she felt Robin place his hand against her back again. She turned in a near panic only to be stopped by the hands he placed gently on her arms. "Regina everything is ok now. You were dreaming darling that was all."

But it wasn't ok! She wanted to shout at him, nothing was ok! She took another deep breath in an attempt to calm herself.

"Did you dream about Roland?" He asked.

Obviously the curse hadn't been broken over the whole town…he didn't remember. It was only her. She had to answer him before he began to think she was losing it.

She nodded her head slowly. "I couldn't find him…I…I looked everywhere, but I couldn't find him.

Robin pulled her into his chest. "He's right here darling. Everything is fine."

Regina allowed her arms to come around him for a moment. False memories of a happy life at the forefront of her mind. She swallowed hard and pulled back. She had to get out of here, she had to see Henry. She needed to see her son.

She licked her lips as she looked up at Robin and nodded. "I'm ok…It just shook me. I…I don't think I will be able to go back to sleep though."

He brought a hand up to push her hair back from her face. "You can try, it's still pretty early and considering that migraine you had last night you really should try to get your rest. I promise to hold you so those bad dreams don't come back again."

Regina shook her head. "No" She paused and tried a light smile. "Really, I'm fine and because of the migraine I didn't get much done at the office yesterday." She took another breath to steady herself. "It would probably be best for me to go in early anyway." She wanted to just run from the house, but couldn't take the chance of making things look strange. Robin still had no idea who he was and it wasn't as if she could just tell him that he had been under a curse all this time.

"Are you sure?" He asked looking at her with concern. "You still look pretty pale."

"I'm sure." She told him. "Really I'm fine, that dream just shook me. You know how that migraine medication can be it probably caused the dream to begin with."

He leaned in and placed a kiss to her forehead. "If you're sure."

She nodded. "I am." she tried giving him a smile again so he would believe her.

"Ok." He agreed. "I will bring Roland by after school, before I go in tonight."

Regina smiled unsure what to say. It had all been a lie.

XXXXXXXX

Emma awoke to the pounding on the door. She looked around groggily before remembering where she was and why she was here.

Storybrook…the cursed town of a bunch of fairy tale characters that she just so happened to belong in. She glanced at the clock and groaned.

Who in the hell would be pounding on her door at 6AM?

"Mom." Henry whined from the rollaway bed beside her. "There's someone at the door."

"I hear them." Emma said as she threw back the covers. It was probably Hook. She was going to tear his head off for waking her at this ungodly hour…right after she had her coffee.

She pulled the door open to find Regina who stared at her with wide eyes.

"Emma." It was all she said but the tone of her voice had Emma lifting an eyebrow.

"Regina." Emma said back even as she heard Henry shoot up in bed.

Regina furrowed her brow her eyes already filling with tears as she looked over Emma's shoulder at her little boy.

"Henry." A small smile formed on her face even as the first tear fell.

The boy flung the covers back and was out of the bed like a shot. "Mom!"

Emma stepped out of the way as Regina moved past her and caught Henry as he launched himself at her. Regina couldn't speak as she held her little boy close to her. Her eyes were overflowing with tears and she felt nearly close to sobbing. She never thought she would have this chance again.

'Henry…Baby." She pulled back holding his face gently. "I need to look at you." She ran her hand gently along his cheek and let out a laugh that turned to a sob. "You're so handsome…so grown up." She told him pulling him back into her so she cold hold him as tight as possible.

Henry pressed his face into her shoulder. "Mom, I was afraid you wouldn't remember. I was afraid the potion wouldn't work. As soon as I saw you again I wanted to hug you so bad, but I couldn't." He cried into her shoulder.

"I'm here now baby." She soothed running her hand over his back. "I missed you so much Henry when we went back. You were all I thought about everyday."

"I love you Mom." Henry tightened his grip around her waist.

Regina brought a hand up to stroke the back of his head. "I love you so much Henry."

They couldn't be sure how long they stood there holding each other. Regina felt nearly positive that she would never be able to let him go again. When she had said goodbye to him at the town line she'd been sure she would never see him again. The thought of never holding her child again had caused a physical ache every day she'd been without him, but he was here, he was in her arms and she never wanted to let him go again.

Henry was in no more of a hurry to let go then Regina was. Every since he got his memory back he had longed to feel her arms around him. It was so comforting to be held by her and truly made him feel that he was home. Now…this moment here with his Mom he could finally believe that everything would be alright again.

"How did you remember?" Henry asked against her shoulder. "When we left you yesterday the potion still hadn't worked."

Regina swallowed and pulled back to look at her son ready to answer him but stopped. Tears filled her eyes all over again as she stared and shook her head. "You've gotten so tall Henry…" She brought a hand up to his face. "You've grown so much."

Henry smiled slightly at her. "I'm almost as tall as you now."

Another tear fell down her face. "I know."

Henry looked at her from under his lashes and smirked a bit. "I guess that isn't really saying much though since you are kind of short."

Regina laughed through a sob and pulled him back into her. "Is this what you getting taller is going to get me?" She asked. "Short jokes?"

Henry pulled back and grinned at her. "I can't help it if I'm about to pass you up in the height department…looks like your gonna have to find you some higher heels."

"If she wears any higher then the ones she has there is no way she will be able to stand." Emma spoke for the first time since the reunion. She had watched as the two of them cried in each others arms then had been amused by their light banter. Henry had told her when they first received their memories back that Regina had actually given them her own memories from Henry's childhood. If that were true that left the blonde a lot to think about.

From the way Henry had acted when he first came to find her she had honestly thought there had been no happy memories between the two of them. Henry had certainly made it sound that way. As it turned out Henry had exaggerated on their first meeting. The memories that she had been given of their own life together had indeed been happy…but they weren't hers, they were Regina's.

Regina and Henry had been happy once. It had been clear to Emma from fairly early on that the two of them did love each other. From Regina's terrified near hysterical reaction to Henry being lost in the mine to Henry begging Emma to protect her after the curse had broken. There was love there. It was a deeper love then she had even understood then.

But she understood it now and if her memories of she and Henry's life were any indication then she couldn't say she had blamed her son in his desperation to get to his other mother.

Emma took a deep breath. His other mother…He had more then one now. She felt the pang in her heart even as she smiled after making the joke about Regina's ridiculous heels.

Regina glanced back up at Emma for the first time. "How did you remember?" She asked before looking back to her son. "How did you end up back here?"

"Hook." Emma answered. "He figured out a way to cross worlds and brought us the book."

"I remembered first." Henry told her.

Regina turned to smile back at her son. "Of course you did." She brought a hand up to his face. "You do have the heart of the truest believer."

Henry smiled as he took her hand and pulled her over to the bed to sit down. He sat beside her and cuddled into her side when she wrapped an arm around him. Emma moved to the bed opposite them and sat down to face them.

"What about you?" Emma asked. "We thought for sure I was going to have to hold you down while Henry tackled you with true loves kiss after it seemed the potion didn't work."

Regina smiled a little and tightened her hold on her son. "It appears it did work, just a bit delayed. I had a nightmare and woke up with my memories."

Emma nodded before it finally occurred to her what that meant. "Wait woke up…so you were with your…um…husband when your memories came back?"

Regina nodded. "Indeed I was."

Emma made a face. "Wow I bet that was awkward."

Regina took a breath. "That is an understatement. What's even more awkward is that he still has no idea that he isn't actually married to me."

"Hmm…" Emma just made a sound. It had to be pretty weird to believe you were married to someone only to wake up one day to find you weren't.

"Mom do you have any idea who cast the curse?" Henry wanted to know.

Regina nodded. "I do." She told them. "Her name was Elphaba, she is otherwise known as…"

"The Wicked Witch of the West." Emma finished and shrugged. "What?" she said when Regina only looked at her. "I've seen Wicked."

"Oz is real?!" Henry said with some excitement.

Regina made a face of disgust. "Apparently so."

"Of course it's real." Emma threw in. "Why wouldn't it be real?! Why wouldn't any of this be real?! Why wouldn't I be the daughter of freaking Snow White and Prince Charming?!"

Regina raised a brow at Emma's mini rant. "Are you finished?"

"Not quite…I just need to throw in how sick I am of fairy tales." Emma added.

"You'll forgive me for not feeling sorry for you dear, but I did just wake up next to a man who is convinced he's my husband even though if he was in his right mind he would most likely be sickened by the idea that he's actually married to The Evil Queen."

"Don't forget the kid that isn't really your son." Henry threw in.

Regina felt a pang when she thought of Roland. The boy that she had five years worth of memories of. If she was honest with herself she felt that same pang when she thought of Robin, but she couldn't allow herself to go there now…not when she was holding her son in her arms again.

Emma watched Regina swallow and say nothing to Henry's comment about the little boy she'd been raising.

"So what now?" Emma changed the subject. "How do we break this thing?"

Regina shook her head. "I have no idea." She told her.

"Great!" Emma clapped her hands. "So we're no better off then we were yesterday."

"No, we're better off." Henry said as he cuddled into his mother's side.

"Regina" Emma started. "We explored the town a little yesterday and we saw everyone…of course none of them knew us, but everyone was there…except one person. I didn't see my mother anywhere."

Regina nodded as she brought a hand up to stroke Henry's head. "I haven't seen her in the time we've been here." She looked back up into Emma's eyes. "I don't know where she is."

"Is it possible she got left behind?" Emma wanted to know.

Regina shook her head. "I was with her when the curse took the land."

"Yeah, but I mean maybe there was a glitch or something…like she was protected somehow, or the curse didn't overtake her, people were protected before when your mother cast the spell to stop your curse from taking them." Emma answered.

"No one knew the spell my mother used." Regina answered and looked at Emma with something that looked like sadness in her eyes. "The curse took her Emma…I was with her, we were holding on to each other."

Emma raised a brow at that even as Henry pulled back from her side. "You were holding on to Grandma?"

Regina nodded. "The witch showed up just as the curse was about to take all of us. I saw the way she looked at Snow…or maybe the better thing to say is I saw the way she looked at her stomach. She wanted that baby." Regina swallowed. "I had just done a binding spell on Robin and Roland in the hopes that they wouldn't be separated during the curse and it was still in my mind. I ran to your mother and used it on her so the two of us would be bound."

"So then you can find her." Emma stated.

Regina shook her head again. "Not without magic."

Emma let out a breath as she stood up to pace. "But you just said that you used it on Robin and Roland so they wouldn't be separated and it worked! So why can't it work now?"

"Because it didn't work." Regina explained.

Emma turned back to look at her. "You're not making any sense Regina."

Regina took a breath. "The spell was a long shot and I told them that from the beginning. It wouldn't work without magic but I performed it anyway just in case magic were ever to enter Storybrook again…so they would be able to find each other."

"But it did work!" Emma argued. "They are together here."

"I didn't" Regina answered. "If it had then your mother would have been with me when we began living our cursed lives."

"So Robin and Roland being together was just a coincidence?" Emma asked.

"No." Regina looked up at her. "It was part of her plan…putting them with me was part of her plan."

"But why?" Henry asked. "I thought the curse was meant to make people miserable."

Regina looked down at her son. "People can be given any memories that the caster wants them to have." she explained. "She wanted me to have happy memories…of a life I dreamed of as little girl."

Emma sat back down on the bed. "A family…with the white picket fence?" She asked.

Regina smirked a little. "Something like that."

"Why would she want to give you your childhood dream?" Emma wanted to know.

Regina shook her head. "I don't know…I know she has a vendetta against me, although I have never met her." She looked down at her son then back up to Emma. "I can't be sure this is why but I suspect that she wanted to give me my childhood dream so I would be heartbroken when they are taken away."

Emma raised a brow at her. "Will you be?"

Regina felt the pang in her heart again but ignored it and shrugged. "I'm used to people leaving me."

Emma blinked she could see the pain in her eyes but chose to say nothing. "But if she wanted it all to be taken away then that would mean she wants the curse to be broken."

Regina nodded in confirmation. "Us breaking the curse could be playing directly into her hands."

"So what the hell are we supposed to do?" Emma asked. "Just go on like nothing is happening? Not break the curse?"

"No." Regina answered. "We still break it. We have to…but I think we should do it on our terms."

"Meaning what?" Emma asked.

Regina shook her head. "For now we have to pretend as if nothing has changed. The curse can be broken without bringing magic back…it was broken by you and Henry before and Gold was the one who brought magic back later. We have to figure out how to get magic back when we break it otherwise we may never find your mother."

"Do you know where this woman is now?" Henry asked.

"I do." Regina answered. "She runs Gold's shop."

"Great so she is in charge of everything in the town that may have magical properties." Emma answered.

"Maybe." Regina said. "We need to get into the library. I can give you some books that we are going to need to figure out our next step."

"If they're going to help us then how do you know they are in the library?" Emma wanted to know.

"Because they are." Regina answered. "They were there in my curse as well…many are…I guess coded would be the right word. They seem to be fictional stories when really there are objects and meanings behind many of the things written."

"Ok. So we get the books then what." Emma asked.

"We figure out what we need. There is a town meeting on Monday, and Elphaba always comes to the town meetings. While she is there you will slip into the shop to get the things we need."

"I can help!" Henry piped up.

"No!" His mothers both said in unison.

"Aww come on!" Henry whined.

Regina brought her hand up to stroke his cheek again. "It's to dangerous and I am not about to send you on a dangerous mission after I just got you back."

Henry huffed out a breath. "I never get to do any of the exciting stuff." He complained.

"I should get to the office before anyone questions where I am…I don't want her to suspect I have my memories back." Regina told them and pulled a piece of paper from her purse. She jotted down the titles to the books they would need and handed it to Henry. "I will put you in charge of this mission though." She told him and placed a kiss to his forehead.

Emma nodded. "We'll get the books, pick up breakfast and meet you at your office."

Regina nodded before turning back to Henry and pulling him into her arms. "I'm not ready to let you out of my sight yet."

Henry pulled back and grinned. "It's ok Mom, once Operation…" He paused "I haven't thought of a name for this one yet."

Regina smiled at him. "We'll think of one at my office later." she told him.

Henry smiled and nodded. "Once it's all over you won't ever have to let go of me again." He told her.

She smiled back down at him. "I hope you're right my prince."

XXXXXXXX

They had been at it most of the day. Operation Twister was in full swing. Henry had thought of the name because on the Wicked Witch and it had been a twister that dropped a house on her sister. From what Regina could tell there were a few things that had magical properties to help bring memories back, but most of them consisted of potions…which needed magic. The only thing that it seemed would work was true love. It had been true loves kiss that had broken the first curse and the true love potion that brought magic back.

"How did Gold make the potion?" Emma asked as she glanced through another book.

"He took a hair from your mother and father." Regina told her. "Unfortunately we can't replicate that because we have no idea where your mother is and even if we did, it wouldn't work because they have to remember each other in order for it to be true love. You can't have true loves kiss when you don't remember your true love."

Henry piped up. "But we remember each other! Emma woke me up with true loves kiss and I know that you could to Mom! What if we used our hair to make a potion and drop that into the well?"

Regina furrowed a brow. "It might work."

They all looked up when the door flew open. "Mommy!" Roland called out and ran to her. "Look what I made you in school today!" He held up a necklace that had been made with various shapes and colors of pasta.

Regina gave him a wide smile and pulled him into her lap. "I love it sweetheart!" She bent her head so that he could slip it around her neck. "It is absolutely beautiful!" She placed a kiss on his head then looked up to see Henry scowling at the two of them.

Emma noticed the look their son was giving Roland and chimed in with. "I think that is the best pasta necklace I have ever seen Roland!"

Roland turned and beamed at her. "It looks pretty on Mommy."

"Indeed it does." They heard from the doorway and turned to see Robin leaning against the frame.

Regina blushed slightly completely unsure how to act around him now that she knew the truth.

"Hello again Emma" Robin greeted then turned to the scowling boy beside her. "Henry"

"Hi sheriff." Emma smiled and nudged Henry in the side.

"Hey" The boy answered.

"Mommy I wanna watch a video on the puter." He told her.

"Computer angel." Regina corrected automatically.

Roland gave her a mischievous grin. "I like puter better."

Regina laughed and stood with him in her arms to carry him to her desk. She set him up with the headphones she kept in her office for him. Once he was settled in she turned to find Robin standing just behind her and blinked.

"I'll be working the late shift tonight so you will probably be asleep when I get home." He told her as he brought his arms around her waist.

Regina just swallowed and nodded her head.

He leaned in to her a little. "I'm off tomorrow so maybe we can spend the day together." He smiled as he pressed a gentle kiss to her lips.

Regina cleared her throat. "Yes…um I hope it's ok but I invited Emma and Henry for dinner tomorrow night." She shrugged a little. "I thought it would be nice since the town rarely gets visitors."

He smiled at her. "Sure." He leaned in again for another kiss and pulled back after a moment. "Darling are you ok? You still seem a bit off."

Regina smiled and shook her head. "I'm fine." She told him. "Still just a little shaken from my dream last night is all." She was going to have to get better at this she thought to herself. She had to last through the weekend until Emma could break into the pawn shop on Monday. She smiled and leaned forward to place a kiss to his cheek…that's what her cursed self would have done.

He smiled at her. "Ok, I love you."

Regina smiled and nodded.

Robin leaned in to place one more kiss to her cheek before turning to leave. He nodded at Emma and Henry who had quickly went back to what they were doing attempting to pretend that they hadn't been watching Regina with her cursed husband. "Emma, Henry" Robin said as he walked out the door. "I will see you two at dinner tomorrow night."

Emma smiled. "Yeah, see ya tomorrow night."

When Robin walked out and left them alone again Regina quietly walked back to the table to sit beside them.

"Is there still a kitchen down the hall?" Emma asked.

Regina nodded. "Yes."

Emma turned to Henry. "Hey kid, why don't you go down and see if you can rustle us up some drinks and a snack…I'm starving."

Henry nodded feeling a little hungry himself. "Ok." He turned and bolted from the room.

Emma looked back to find Regina watching Roland on the computer. "It's rough isn't it?" She asked and continued when Regina looked back at her. "Having two lifetimes in your head?"

Regina nodded and looked back to the boy that sat at the computer. "I remember raising him…I remember holding him when he cried out for me. I remember everything." She sighed. "I'm going to lose him."

Emma reached forward and laid a hand on Regina's arm. "When I first got my memories back…I was happy, but I was devastated…still am really. I didn't actually raise Henry, but it all still feels so real."

"To us it is real" Regina answered. "Remembering your old life…it doesn't take away your cursed memories…now all of a sudden I have memories of raising a little boy I didn't raise but…" she shook her head. "I love him."

Emma didn't bother to ask about her cursed husband. It wasn't the time. "Breaking the curse won't take away his memories either…you may not lose him all the way."

Regina looked up at Emma. "When Robin remembers…" She shook her head and laughed. "Would you want the Evil Queen in your son's life?"

When Emma only smirked and raised a brow Regina laughed. "Well I suppose you don't have a choice."

"You're not her anymore Regina…and you gave Henry and happy childhood." Emma paused for a moment. "He told me the memories you gave us were yours."

Regina looked down for a moment. "We were happy once."

Emma smiled. "I know."

XXXXXXXX

Regina settled into bed with what seemed to be a million different thoughts running through her head. She had hated saying goodbye to her son that night more then anything in the world, but it had to be done…at least until they were able to break the curse.

She held Roland a bit longer that night as she put him to bed. She couldn't explain how all of this made her feel. It was if the memories of the life she knew was real and also the one she knew wasn't all ran together. She did love Roland…how could she not? She had memories of raising him and loving him.

But they weren't real…none of them were.

They'd come to the conclusion that the witch wanted her curse broken. Regina had to admit if she wanted to hurt her giving her this double life in her head and ripping part of it away from her would certainly be effective. She was going to lose her family…the one she had years of memories with.

She couldn't explain her feelings…even to herself. She had Henry and she wouldn't trade him for anything, but the heartbreak of losing this part of her family. That was going to tear her apart.

She snapped her eyes shut as she heard Robin come through the door. It was better to pretend to be asleep then to let him know she was awake and cause another awkward moment. She concentrated on evening her breathing as she felt him climb into bed and attempted to stay still as he scooted behind her and wrapped an arm around her waist. She chanced a glance down at the arm he wrapped around her and that is when she saw it.

Why had this not registered before now? The lion tattoo that she'd always known was there? Oh God this was the man that pixie dust had told her was her true love.

She felt him place a gentle kiss to the side of her head and one tear escaped as she heard him whisper. "Goodnight my love."

Yes, this was certainly going to be a very effective way of breaking her heart.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you guys enjoyed! You all know by now that reviews are my crack! Please tell me what you thought!
> 
> A week from Sunday Once is finally back! Who's excited?!


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks to all who reviewed/followed/favored! I have bumped up the rating to M.

Regina awoke to the feel of strong arms around her. It was a familiar feeling as this is how she'd woken up nearly every morning since they were brought back to Storybrook. In the last several months she'd woken every morning feeling safer then she ever had in her life. As comforting as the feeling was it was equally heartbreaking. She wouldn't be waking to this much longer.

At some point in the night she'd turned in her sleep and she was now nestled into his chest. She kept her eyes closed doing her best to memorize the feel of his arms around her. She wanted to remember the security of being in the arms of someone who truly loved her. Of course she didn't fool herself into actually believing that he loved her. He was cursed to feel this way and make no mistake, anyone in their right mind would realize that being married to the Evil Queen was a curse.

It was made all the more heartbreaking that this was the man who was supposed to be her happy ending. He was the one who was supposed to be her true love, but that was a lifetime ago. The things she had done since certainly insured that no one would be able to love her.

So she would enjoy this moment. She would remember what it felt like to be held by someone who loved her. Sure it was a lie, but it was most likely as close as she would ever come to it.

Her heart beat a little faster when she felt him shift and place a kiss against her hair. She did her best to remain relaxed as he began rubbing her back lightly. She continued to tell herself in her mind to act natural…don't freak out.

The truth was she didn't know how to be natural in a situation like this. For one thing she wasn't used to being held like this…well her cursed self was, but Regina wasn't that person. She was herself now and people didn't hold her like this. Not to mention the fact that he was still cursed and she couldn't very well just tell him what was going on.

He would have her locked away for sure.

She took a deep breath and shifted giving him a soft smile. "Good morning."

He looked down at her and grinned. "Good morning beautiful." He shifted and moved down so they were now both on their side and facing each other. He put his hand on her side and placed a kiss to her lips. "Did you sleep well?"

She smiled. "I always do when I'm with you." What?! She thought to herself. Where in the hell had that come from. Maybe there was more of her cursed self still in there then she realized.

He moved his hand that currently rested at her waist and brought it around her back before pulling her closer to him. Her chest was now flush against his and she felt her breath catch. Oh no…would he expect sex?

Regina's heart beat a little faster. It wasn't as if they hadn't had sex. Hell they'd been living together as husband and wife for nearly six months…of course they had, but now…things were certainly not the same as they were.

She had her memories back and he didn't. It wouldn't be right for her to allow that to happen anymore would it? It just didn't seem fair to him to continue a sexual relationship when she knew the truth and he didn't.

She sighed and closed her eyes when he brought his hand up to push her hair back from her face. "It's nice to actually get to spend some time in bed with you. The last two mornings you have gotten up so early I haven't had a chance to hold you…or even talk to you."

Regina smiled and told herself to stop panicking. "I missed you too."

He grinned. "I've missed you a lot." He leaned in and pressed another kiss to her mouth. When he lingered for a moment Regina instinctively parted her lips to allow him access. He grinned a bit before sliding his tongue slowly into her mouth. All of Regina's thoughts seemed to melt away as he kissed her. She moaned into his mouth as he deepened the kiss and their tongues tangled in an intimate dance with each other.

He pulled back for a moment and pressed a gentle kiss to her cheek while he allowed his hand to slide down to her hip. He smiled and began to lower his head for another kiss before Regina placed a hand on his chest. One more kiss like that and it wouldn't matter if sleeping with him was right or wrong, she would be putty in his hands.

Damn his kisses were potent.

"I should probably start breakfast. Roland will be up soon." She told him.

He groaned a little and pulled her closer. "Aww…it's the weekend. He might sleep for a little while yet and I have missed my wife." He leaned down to feather soft kisses along her neck.

Regina swallowed at the sensations he was sending through her body with the attention he was paying to her neck. "Mmm…I would hate for us to start something we can't finish, not to mention that your son has the habit of barging into our room on Saturday mornings…I wouldn't want him to end up scared for life. He is an early riser."

Robin nearly growled. "Just like his Mother." He leaned in and placed a kiss to her nose.

Regina felt a pang at that comment…it was the same pang she felt every time she remembered that Roland wasn't actually her child.

"Can we at least stay in bed until he wakes up?" Robin wanted to know. "I promise I'll behave myself…our son won't be scared for life today."

Regina grinned. "I'm not sure you are capable of behaving yourself."

Robin ran his hand up her side. "Well I will admit that being this close to you makes it difficult." He leaned in for another kiss. "But I will do my best. I miss holding my girl."

Regina wanted to cry when he called her his girl. This life with him and Roland was so normal. It was what she had dreamed of for so long as a little girl. Living with her mother had been a rough childhood. All she had wanted was the complete opposite of that. She'd wanted a simple life with the man she loved and children…she'd wanted lots of children.

That life hadn't been in the cards for her though. It had been ripped away the day her mother had killed Daniel and she had been forced to marry the king. He had never even pretended to love her. Instead he'd treated her as a glorified babysitter that he occasionally liked to use to warm his bed.

There had been other lovers, but there had never been love…there had never been kindness, longing or tenderness. All of her relationships had been lust driven. There had been no spending a lazy Saturday morning in bed kissing and holding each other close.

It would have been better if Regina had never been shown what it was she was missing.

"Come on Regina…cuddle with me for a while." Robin urged.

She gave him a small smile and this time it was she who leaned in for a kiss. She moved her hand to the back of his head as she gently urged him to open his lips with her tongue. One more kiss wouldn't hurt. Just one more.

He smiled when she pressed herself against him and was more then happy to oblige her in deepening the kiss. When she pulled back for a breath she gently stroked his face.

"You know it's not fair to ask me to behave myself then turn around and kiss me like that." He told her grinning.

Before she could speak the bedroom door opened and an excited five year old was leaping into their bed. "Good morning!" The boy said grinning from the end of the bed.

"Good morning sweetheart." Regina smiled at the energetic child.

"Your son has terrible timing." Robin whispered into her ear.

"I told you it wouldn't be long before he was up." Regina grinned at him.

"Daddy…" Roland said pushing on his father's leg. "Move over. It's my turn to snuggle with Mommy."

Robin grumbled a bit but moved so Roland could crawl between them. The boy settled himself between his parents and cuddled himself against Regina. "What we gonna do today Mama?" He asked her.

"What would you like to do?" She asked him.

"Can we go the arcade?" He asked looking up at her with pleading eyes.

In this moment…in this last little bit of time she had with him, she would promise him anything. Hell she would probably get him a puppy if he asked for one. "I think the arcade sounds like a wonderful idea."

The boy smiled and turned to his father. "You gonna come Daddy?" He asked.

Robin grinned and ruffled the boy's hair. "Well I'm not just gonna sit around here by myself all day."

"Don't forget that Emma and Henry are coming for dinner tonight." Regina reminded them both.

"Yay!" Roland said. "The arcade then some new friends!"

Regina leaned in and placed a kiss to Roland's head. "I guess I should get up and make breakfast." She tickled Roland's belly causing him to laugh and squirm. "I gotta feed my growing boy."

Robin reached out and took her hand into his then brought it to his mouth. "I'll fix breakfast." He told her. "Your growing boy hasn't seen much of you the last two days and I think he's starved for some Mommy cuddles."

Regina smiled and brought her arm around Roland as Robin climbed out of bed. "Any requests?" He asked.

"Pancakes!" Roland said.

"I think I can manage pancakes" Robin told them both as he grinned and walked out of the room.

"Mommy, I've missed you in the mornings." Roland told her. He was used to her being the one to wake him in the mornings for school, but since she had left the house early the last two days he hadn't gotten his normal morning routine.

"I've missed you in the mornings too baby." She told him and pulled him a little closer. "Roland you know I love you right."

Roland looked up at her and nodded. "Yep." He answered.

Regina smiled at his simple answer. "I just want you to remember that ok?" She brushed his hair back from his head. "No matter what happens, I want you to remember that I love you so very much."

"I won't forget Mama." He promised.

She smiled a little sadly and placed a kiss to his head. "Good."

XXXXXXXX

Regina put the finishing touches on her lasagna before placing it in the oven. Their family day had gone well. She had been worried that she wouldn't be able to act the way her cursed self had, but she found that it wasn't very hard to fall back into the routine that she'd lived for the past several months.

Of course having Roland around made things easier. He was such a sweet boy. It was so strange to have two separate lifetimes in your head. While she knew who she really was and that this had never really been her family at the same time she couldn't help but think of them that way. She could tell herself in her head that the memories of them weren't real, but her heart was a different story entirely.

She did think of Roland as her son, she could only hope that when the curse was broken and everything came crashing down around her that she would still be able to have a part in his life. She hoped he would want her to and that Robin would be ok with it.

Spending time with Robin was a little more complicated. Being with him made her long for things that she knew weren't meant for her. No one could live the life she had and expect someone to fall in love with them. Robin was to good of a man to want to be with a woman like her.

The way he was with her though…that made her long for this life they had together. He was considerate of her feelings, he listened to her and he was kind. She paid attention to the gentle hand that he would lay on her back or the way he would look at her when she was talking to Roland. He looked at her with love. Only one other person had ever looked at her that way and he'd been taken from her.

Regina had often found herself wondering after Daniel's death what it would be like to be married to a man who looked at her that way. Now she knew. It was to bad she would have to lose it.

She shook her head. She was being ridiculous. These were cursed memories. They weren't real. None of it was real. She had to stop dwelling on Robin. Everything they had found together was a lie. It wasn't like Roland who was a child and would possibly be willing to have her in his life. Robin was a grown man. He was a man who had been in love before…probably with a decent woman. He would see this curse as exactly what it was…a curse.

She glanced up when she heard the doorbell. She was nervous about this dinner as well. It hadn't been lost on her the day before the way Henry had glared at Roland. If someone had told her two years ago that Henry would one day look at another child with jealousy because of her she never would have believed it, but if she wasn't mistaken it had been jealousy in his eyes. She also hadn't missed the fact that Henry assumed that when the curse was broken, Regina would cease to have anything to do with Roland.

Of course he may be right about that. Regina's heart picked up when she thought about the fact that Robin could very well keep Roland from her. After all she wasn't his mother…she was the Evil Queen. Just because the man had been friendly to her in the Enchanted Forest didn't mean that he would want her to be a parental figure in his son's life.

But if he was willing to let her be in his life she wanted to.

She would have to talk to Henry about that if it happened. She knew he wouldn't be happy about it, but she couldn't just erase her feelings for the little boy that she'd grown to love. She wanted him in her life. She hoped that Henry would be able to accept that.

She walked out of the kitchen to find Robin already at the door letting Emma and Henry in. Her heart lurched as it always did when she saw her son. She wanted to run to him and pull him into her arms.

Emma smiled at her. On the way over she had coached Henry on what to say. She didn't want him calling her Mom. Talk about blowing their cover. She hadn't been sure how good of an idea this would be. All they needed was just one thing to go wrong and it would be over. They would all be locked in the Storybrooke mental institution and the curse would remain in tact forever.

"Something smells great!" Emma commented.

"I made lasagna." Regina told them.

Henry grinned. "My favorite." He commented making Regina smile. She knew it was his favorite, it's why she had made it.

"Mine too!" Roland piped up. "Mommy makes the best lasagna."

Henry looked at the boy with that same look Regina had seen the day before.

"Indeed she does." Robin added. "The best lasagna in town."

Emma pasted on a smile when she saw the way Henry was glaring at Roland. "Anything we can do to help? I'm not the best cook but I'm great with salad…or you know slicing bread."

Regina smiled and shook her head. "I have everything under control, but I wouldn't mind some company." It wouldn't hurt to have the opportunity to see if the two of them had learned anything new.

"I'll keep you company." Henry added quickly then shrugged when Emma gave him a look. What part of act natural had he missed? "I like watching people cook." he added.

Regina saw the crestfallen look on Roland's face. He'd been hoping that the older boy would want to play with him. He'd been talking about Henry coming all day and wondered if he would like his bedroom which had various super heroes all over it.

"Are you sure Henry?" Robin asked noticing the look that came to his son's face. "Roland and I were just about to start up the Xbox."

Henry shook his head. "Nah, I like to hang out in the kitchen." He grinned and added. "I don't really get the chance to do it…like…ever." He eyed Emma with a grin.

Emma rolled her eyes. "That's his way of saying I'm a terrible cook." She looked at Roland who still looked sad that Henry didn't want to hang out with him. "I however hate the kitchen though so I would love to play some Xbox." She told the little boy. It would give Henry and Regina some time together anyway

He looked up his face brightening a little. "Ok." He took her by the hand and led her into the living room.

Robin looked at them as if he wanted to follow, but then looked back at Regina. "Um…is there anything you need me to do?" He asked her.

Regina grinned and shook her head. "Go play your game."

He smiled back at her and dropped a quick kiss to her mouth. "You're the best babe."

"I know." She told him and shooed him into the living room.

When they were left alone again Henry wrapped his arms around her waist and grinned up at her. "I'm glad I get to spend some time with you."

She smiled back at him and pulled her arms a bit tighter. "Me too."

Once they were in the kitchen Henry sat at the island and watched as she began to prepare the salad. "It's weird seeing you with a husband."

Regina laughed a little. "It's weird having a husband." She told him.

"Who is he in the Enchanted Forest?" Henry wanted to know.

Regina grinned. "Well I'll give you a hint…His name hasn't changed."

Henry looked at her for a moment. "Robin Hood?!" He grinned from ear to ear. "My Mom is married to Robin Hood."

"So it would seem." Regina said.

"Did you know him there?" Henry asked.

Regina nodded. "We helped each other a bit."

"Were you guys friends?" He wanted to know.

"We were friendly." She said.

Henry lifted a brow. "Did you like him?"

"He was nice to me and always polite." Regina told him.

"But I mean…did you like like him." Henry asked.

"Double like huh?" She grinned at her son. "No, I had trouble focusing on anything but you when I was there."

"So you're not attracted to him at all?" he asked.

"I…" Regina started to answer then made a face. "Why am I talking about this with you? You are my son. I'm supposed to be asking you about your crushes not telling you about mine."

"So you do have a crush on him?" Henry grinned when Regina narrowed her eyes at him. "You're talking to me because at the moment me and Emma are your only options to talk to…and Emma has a tendency to make conversations like this awkward."

Regina shook her head and leaned in to place a kiss to his cheek. "Well at least I know you come by it honestly dear."

Henry laughed and rolled his eyes. "I'm not as awkward as Emma Mom."

She smiled again. "Maybe not quite."

Henry studied her for a moment. "So what about the kid?"

Regina looked at her son's face. "Roland…he has a name Henry."

He rolled his eyes. "Yeah so what about Roland?"

"Roland is Robin's son. I actually met him before I met Robin. He wandered into my part of the castle and got himself turned around. I helped him find his father." Regina told him. She laid a hand on Henry's arm. "He's a very sweet boy Henry. You should really give him a chance." When Henry only looked down at her hand she continued. "He's been looking forward to you coming all day. He wanted to show you his room…He really wants to impress you."

"Why?" Henry asked.

Regina smiled and ruffled his hair. "Because you're so cool."

Henry rolled his eyes. "I would rather spend time with you."

Regina took a breath and nodded. "Ok, but maybe you could let him show you his room before you leave…and maybe you could be very impressed by it?"

Henry looked back up at her. "What difference does it make? When he gets his memories back he's not going to care about impressing me…or his room."

"Henry" Regina said in exasperation. "He's five. Of course he will still care about those things."

Henry looked back up at her. "Do you love him?"

Regina blinked but didn't hesitate. "Yes."

Henry shook his head. "Why? He's not your son! I am!"

Regina took his hand into hers. "Yes you are but so is he…Henry" Regina paused. "You know how you have new memories with Emma now?"

Henry nodded. "Yeah."

"Well are those memories any less real to you even though you know the truth now?" She asked him.

Henry sighed. "I guess not." He looked back into her eyes. "But I am Emma's son…your not really his Mom."

That comment cut like a knife. "Blood doesn't matter Henry…you know that. To him I am his Mother…and yes he is my son. If Robin is ok with it I want to continue to be in his life. Even after the curse breaks."

Henry shook his head. "But you're my Mom."

Regina laid her hand on his cheek. "If I were to get married and have another child would you object to it?"

Henry shook his head. "I don't know…I just always had you to myself before."

Regina smiled. "And I loved it when it was the two of us Henry, but things are different now…I have other people in my life, but it hasn't made me love you any less."

"If you love Roland like your son then do you love Robin too?" He wanted to know.

"I…things with Robin are more complicated. It always is with adults." She told him. "Will you just try to be sweet with Roland? Please?" Regina asked him.

Henry rolled his eyes. "I guess."

XXXXXXXX

Henry and Roland walked back down the stairs after dinner with Roland happily chatting away.

"I love Batman! He's my favorite of all!" Roland told him.

"Spiderman's better." Henry told him but caught his mother's eye and sighed. "But Batman is cool too."

"Thanks for having us for dinner." Emma said as she slipped into her coat. "It was great." She and Regina hadn't really had the chance to talk but Henry had gotten to spend some time with his other mother.

"Thanks for coming!" Robin said. "It's always great to get to know people from other places. Sometimes we forget around here that there are other places besides our small town."

Regina smiled sad to see her son leaving again. "It was wonderful having both of you." She laid a hand on Henry's shoulder. "Thanks for keeping me company in the kitchen."

"Anytime" He grinned at her. He wanted to hug her but didn't want to make it seem weird so he waved instead. "See ya soon."

"Thanks for coming to see my room Henry!" Roland said.

Henry gave the little boy a small smile…he did promise his mother he would try. "Sure kid, It's a pretty cool room." Roland beamed at him and Henry felt a little stab of guilt for not being very nice to him.

Regina mouthed a thank you to Henry and he smiled at her. "See you all soon." Emma told them as they turned and walked to the car.

"They are really friendly." Robin commented as he watched them. "I wonder how much longer they will stay."

"As long as it takes." Regina said then finished when he raised his eyebrow. "For Emma to find that girl she's looking for."

"Can I play more Xbox?" Roland asked.

Regina turned to him. "It's getting close to your bed time and you still need a bath."

"Please Mama?" He asked with big sad eyes.

Regina knelt down and pulled him into a hug. "Xbox tomorrow baby…bath time now."

XXXXXXXX

"He out?" Robin asked from the couch when Regina walked down after changing into her pajamas and reading Roland a story.

Regina smiled. "He barely made it through three pages."

"He had a big day" Robin said as she sat on the opposite end of the couch. "Why are you sitting way down there for?" He grinned.

Regina swallowed and shrugged but moved closer and he wrapped an arm around her. "What are you watching?"

He shrugged. "Some old movie called 'Romancing the Stone' It's not bad."

She smiled at him and turned to watch the TV. She felt him shift and begin to play with her hair a bit. This was nice. Sitting with him like this. It was just to normal.

He heart began to beat a little harder when he leaned in and placed a kiss to her neck. She swallowed as he moved up to nibble on her ear.

This was wrong she thought frantically. He didn't have his memories but she did. She shouldn't let this happen…but it was so nice to be with someone like this. Someone who actually felt something for her besides simply lust.

She wanted this. She wanted to be with him. Not as her cursed self but as her. She could remember what it felt like to make love with him. It had happened many times when she was still under the curse.

Was it really so wrong to want to feel this way as herself…just once? Was it really so wrong that she wanted to know what it felt like to be touched by someone who loved her? She wanted to know what it felt like…not as her cursed self, but as her, the person she was. She wanted to know what it felt like for someone to cherish her. She wanted to feel hands that didn't possess her roughly and with no care for her own pleasure. This was certainly the closest she would ever come to it. She knew that it wasn't her he was in love with, but the cursed version of herself. But for once in her life she would like to know what it felt like to be loved like that. To have someone look at her the way Robin did.

Was it really so wrong?

She sighed as he moved back down to her neck and her breathing increased. She couldn't think straight as he feathered kissed across her jaw before reaching her mouth. She parted her lips in invitation and he didn't hesitate to dive in. She let out a moan as he moved his hand from her stomach to lightly caress one of her nipples through her pajama shirt.

To hell with what was right. She thought to herself. She may hate herself in the morning but she wanted this. She wanted to know what it felt like to be touched by someone who loved her.

She moved her hand to the back of his head as he began to trail his lips down her neck and into the V of her pajama top even as he moved his hand to the buttons. She feared her heart would pound right out of her chest as his lips moved lower and her top began to fall open in the center. When he got to the last button he brought his hands under her legs and she shifted so that she now straddled him on the couch. He grinned at her as he weaved his fingers through her hair and brought her lips down to his for another kiss.

He moved his hands down to her pajama to and pushed the sides apart so he could see her. He moved both hands over her breasts and lightly brushed her hardened nipples as he moved his hands along the front of her body causing her to let out a long moan. He grinned into her mouth before he moved his lips down her chest. He feathered kisses along the upper part of her torso before finally arriving at her breast. Regina gasped when he pulled one of her nipples into his mouth.

It felt so good. It felt right. No one had ever touched her this way. All of her experiences before this had been rushed and heated. No one had ever wanted to take their time and savor her.

She bit her lip when he moved his attention to her other breast. She wanted him more then she had ever wanted anything in her life. She arched her back into his mouth.

"Mommy!" She heard the scream as if in a fog. "Mommy! Daddy!" She heard it again this time more clearly. Roland was screaming for them from his room.

Regina swallowed even as Robin's head fell back to the couch and he groaned. She cleared her throat and sat up straight pulling her pajama top closed. "I'll get him." She told Robin.

He smiled a bit. "I'll come with you." He told her.

Regina did up the buttons to her top as she hurried up the stairs to her crying child and pushed open the door to his room. "What is it baby?" He had been having nightmares recently. Regina hoped it was just a stage.

"There was a monster Mama. It was trying to get me!" He told her.

"Oh, sweetheart. There are no monsters here." She walked to him after flipping on the light and pulled him into her arms.

"Mommy I saw it!" He told her. Robin walked in a moment later. "Daddy there was a monster!" He told Robin.

Robin went through the normal routine of checking the closet and under the bed but Roland couldn't be swayed.

He shook his head with tears rolling down his face and clung to Regina. "Mommy please don't leave me here. I'm scared!" He told her. "Can I please sleep with you and Daddy?"

Regina sighed and looked up at Robin who already looked resigned to the fact that what they had started earlier would not be finished tonight. She sighed internally but shook her head. It was better this way…it was. She shouldn't have let that happen. Robin could end up hating her more if she did. No they couldn't do this. It really was better this way.

She ignored the little voice that told her she would never have this opportunity again. She would never know what it felt like to be with a man who truly loved her.

It didn't matter. At least that's what she tried to tell herself.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you all enjoyed. Please please leave a review! They are my crack as you know.
> 
> I do have some bad news. I have to send my computer to get fixed on Monday. It is halfway working right now which is why I was able to give you an update on this story, but I will be without it for 7 to 10 business days so I am not sure about updates on my stories during that time. Since I do use my computer for work too I am going to see if they will let me borrow one of the laptops we have there to use at home. If they do I might be able to get you an update on at least Starting Over but I will have to see.
> 
> Once is back tomorrow! Are you excited?! Please stop by and say hello on tumblr if you like, I'm thequeenstolemyheart (although if I don't have a computer I won't be on there as much either) You can also find me on twitter. I do have the twitter app on my phone that I use a lot. I'm mrsddixon


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok, first I want to apologize for the really long wait on this chapter. Life has been crazy and I was having some trouble figuring out how I wanted to transition this to the next part of the story.
> 
> That being said, this chapter is much shorter then my others. It is a transitional chapter that is going to take us on to the second part of this story. I am already writing and have had much of it planned out for weeks so it shouldn't be long until the next update! I really hope you all enjoy this chapter.
> 
> Also just want to remind you that I am borrowing some stuff from Wicked, but am also changing a lot of the story, so please don't be upset with me that things aren't exactly the same. I know there are some die hard Wicked fans out there.

"Anything?" Emma asked Hook when he walked into the diner Sunday morning.

"Nothing yet." While Emma and Henry had gone to Regina's the day before he'd worked on doing a little investigating to see if he could get an idea of where Mary Margaret might be.

Emma sighed. She was truly beginning to worry about what may have happened to her mother. "Where could she be?"

"I'm sure she's around somewhere love…you said Regina was sure she had been taken in the curse. She has to be here." He told her.

"Yeah…but where? Storybrook isn't that big of a town." She shook her head.

"We'll find her." He promised. "I actually have a plan for today." He informed her. "I was thinking that I may follow the witch around. Perhaps she will lead us to her."

Emma looked at him with doubt in her eyes. "Do you really think you can be subtle enough to do that?"

Hook smirked. "Subtlety is my middle name."

Emma rolled her eyes. "You're going to get caught."

Hook grinned. "Oh ye of little faith. If she catches me I'll just turn on the charm and flirt with her a bit. She'll be putty in my hands."

"Or you'll end up dead." Emma deadpanned.

"I didn't know you cared so much Swan." He told her.

Emma raised an eyebrow. "We can hardly afford to lose someone now when there are only four of us who know the truth…five if you count the witch."

"Ah, so it's a numbers game…well I can assure you that I am capable of taking care of myself. You need to worry about figuring out how to break this curse. Once everyone remembers we can have more people searching for your mother."

"You don't think I know that?" Emma asked feeling a bit desperate. They did need to break this curse…her mother's life may depend on it. "We don't want to let on that we know what is going on until we can figure out how to bring magic back…if we don't have that when the curse is broken Regina won't be able to use the spell that she placed on my mother to find her. As long as the curse is in tact time will be frozen and my mother won't go into labor. We can't let that happen. The witch wanted her child."

"You'll figure it out Emma…it's what you do." he assured her.

Emma nodded. "Regina is supposed to meet Henry and I here for breakfast…I'm hoping that she has come up with some brilliant plan overnight on how to make all of this happen."

"Speaking of Henry…Where is the lad?" He wanted to know.

"He's in the back playing video games. He wanted something to do while we wait for Regina to get here." She told him.

"How exactly is Regina explaining all of this to her new husband?" Hook said with a grin.

Emma shook her head. "She's not…she's just making it look like she wants to be friendly to us…apparently her cursed version of herself was much friendlier then she used to be so it doesn't really seem strange to anyone."

Hook glanced up when he heard the bell on the door chime and grinned when he saw Regina walking towards them. "Your Majesty." he said when she reached the table. "You are looking quite stunning this morning. I must say marriage agrees with you."

Regina glared at him. "Shut up…and don't call me that. Do you want to give us away?"

Hook simply grinned at her and stood from the booth. "And on that note I take my leave." He turned back to Emma. "No need to worry Swan, I will find your mother."

Emma rolled her eyes. "Just do me a favor and don't die ok. You might be useful later."

Hook sent her a quick wink. "I'm sure you can find many ways to use me Swan."

Emma put her head in her hands as Hook swaggered out the door.

"He really is an idiot" Regina commented as she sat down in the booth across from her.

"At least he's trying." Emma said.

"Where's Henry?" Regina looked around the diner.

"He went to play video games in the back. He'll be out as soon as he runs out of quarters which shouldn't be long." Emma told her. "So last night went well."

Regina rolled her eyes thinking back to what had nearly happened between her and Robin. "Emma." She said seriously. "We have to break this curse…soon."

Emma smiled at her. "Married life not agreeing with you?"

"Mmm." Regina made a noncommittal sound. The truth was it was agreeing with her entirely to well. She wouldn't be able to hold out much longer before Robin began getting suspicious.

Emma raised her brow. "Or maybe it is…"

Regina picked up a menu without looking back up at Emma. "I'm not going to talk about my personal life with you."

"Fine." Emma stated. "Have it your way."

"I usually do." Regina commented before feeling someone slide into the booth next to her. She looked over to see her son grinning at her.

"Hi Mom." He said

She smiled and slipped an arm around him without thinking. "Hi sweetheart. I missed you"

"You just saw me last night." He told her but then smiled. "I missed you too."

"Umm…guys do you think you could remember that you are actually like…strangers here?" Emma looked around to make sure no one was watching.

"We're not strangers anymore." Henry stated even as Regina pulled her arm from around him and tried to appear more natural with a child she supposedly had just met. "I kept her company while she cooked last night."

"Yes which automatically jumps to you calling her Mom." Emma retorted.

Henry sighed. This wasn't the easiest thing. It was difficult to act as if he didn't know his Mom…I mean she was his Mom. Acting as if they were strangers who had just met was harder then he thought it would be…especially when he forgot to remember they were supposed to be strangers. "Sorry."

Emma gave him a soft smile. "It's ok…just try to remember ok?"

Henry nodded then looked to his brunette mother grinning. "Where's your husband at today?"

Regina looked up to see her grinning son. "You two are enjoying this husband thing aren't you?"

Henry looked back to Emma with a smile. "Mom has a crush on Robin." He shared. "She told me last night."

"I did not!" Regina defended.

"You said that I should be telling you about my crushes not telling me about…"

"I'm well aware of what I said" Regina interrupted and looked over at Emma to see a small smirk on her face. "Honestly I don't know why my love life is so fascinating."

Emma raised a brow. "So you admit you have a love life."

"Stop twisting my words!" To her absolute horror Regina could feel her face begin to redden. "Can we please talk about something else?!" This subject was hitting entirely to close to home especially after what she had nearly allowed to happen between her and Robin the night before.

When Emma saw the blush come over Regina's face she wanted to tease a bit more, seriously…she had never in her life seen Regina Mills blush. It was the flash of pain she saw in the other woman's eyes that caused her to hold back. She suspected Regina's feelings for Robin ran much deeper then Regina was willing to admit.

"Ok, so what do we do today?" Emma wanted to know.

"I want to go out to the well and check things out there. That is where magic was brought back before." Regina shrugged her shoulders a bit. "It's a start"

Emma nodded. It was better then anything she had come up with. "Hook is going to follow the witch around to see if she will lead us to Mary Margaret."

Regina looked up at Emma and arched a brow. "He's going to get caught."

Emma sighed. "That's what I said."

Regina sighed. "Robin took Roland to the park to practice hitting the baseball, they were going to go for pizza afterward. That gives us some time."

Emma nodded. "Good, time is good."

Regina took a breath and nodded.

XXXXXXXX

Regina circled the well and touched the edge gently. "Well there are no traces of magic here."

"Do you think we could try making the true love potion Henry suggested…I mean does it have to be a romantic true love? I was able to wake Henry from the sleeping curse."

Regina shook her head. "I don't know."

"We can try." Henry told them. "It wouldn't hurt right?"

Regina looked at her son's hopeful face. "When Rumple made that potion he had magic. I have to wonder if that factors in."

"But there wasn't magic when Emma woke me up." he argued. "True love is supposed to transcend all realms."

Regina smiled at her son. "You may be right. We can give it a shot."

"Well, well" They all three turned at the voice. "I was wondering when you would finally show up."

Regina moved to push Henry behind her when she saw the woman who had sent them here standing in front of them. She didn't look the same, she was no longer green. Instead now she was a red head who stared at them with a slight smirk.

"Don't tell me you're surprised to see me." She took a few steps forward even as Emma moved next to Regina to shield Henry.

Emma looked around to see if she saw Hook near by.

"Looking for your friend?" She smiled. "You didn't think that I would be fool enough not to notice the infamous Captain Hook following me around. He's hardly subtle."

"What did you do to him?" Emma wanted to know.

Elphaba scoffed. "I merely gave him the slip darling, nothing to worry your pretty head about. I was much more interested in seeing what the three of you were up to." She grinned back at Regina. "So I see you've found your son and obviously they have helped you remember. How does it feel Regina to wake up from a life you always dreamed of only to be reunited with your son and his other mother that you will never live up to?"

Regina narrowed her eyes. "Is there a point you're trying to get to dear?"

Elphaba shrugged. "I'm merely making conversation." She walked towards the well. "So you want to break the curse? I imagine that the reason you're here is because you also wish to bring back magic." she looked into Regina's eyes. "Trying to break the curse on your terms?" She smiled. "Do you think you can defeat me if you have magic?"

Regina smiled back at her. "I know I can."

Elphaba shook her head and tsked. "Always so confident and sure of yourself." She pulled a small vial out of her pocket. "I have a little secret for you Regina."

Regina looked at the potion with the first bit of unease she had felt since Elphaba's arrival. "I'm riveted."

The red head smiled. "I want the curse broken…It was part of my plan all along, you see there are things I need, things I can't get here, but I needed to wait."

"For what?" Emma finally spoke from Regina's side.

Elphaba smiled. "For you of course. The curse can't be broken without the presence of the Savior." She looked back at Regina. "The side benefit of it all was watching you wake up from the life you have always wanted to the sad truth of your real life darling." She stepped closer to Regina. "How do you think it will feel Regina when Robin and the boy you've come to love as your son walk out the door never to look back. How will it feel when the newness of being home wears off and your darling Henry goes running back to his other mother?"

"That's not gonna happen!" Henry spoke up from behind them.

"Won't it?" The woman looked at Henry for a moment before turning back to Regina. "It will happen and you know it darling. After all who can truly love someone like you?"

Regina steeled her expression. She didn't let on how much the truth of that statement stung because in all honestly she believed the witch was right. No one could love her. Henry was excited to see her for now, but that would very likely change. She had never been good enough for anyone…except Daniel. That wasn't likely to change now. "So what it your plan?" Regina raised her brow.

The witch laughed. "Well I'm certainly not going to tell you, but I am going to break this curse Regina." She moved the vial over the well. "And unfortunately for you I'm afraid your plan to bring back magic first isn't going to work…I don't need magic to do what I need to do darling."

She smiled even as she dropped the vial into the well. When green smoke began to come from the well she looked back at Regina "Have a lovely day…Tell your…family…I said hello."

Regina turned to pull Henry into her arms as the green smoke enveloped them.

When the smoke finally cleared the witch was gone.

XXXXXXXX

OZ Two Years Ago

Elphaba stared out the window at the land she had once loved. Her life hadn't been particularly hard…except for the being green part, but for the most part she had been lucky. She didn't know much about her biological parents. The people who raised her had been fairly decent, her father had always favored her sister over her, but she had been lucky she supposed. For a green child to show up in a foreign land the fact they had agreed to take her in had been a miracle.

The land had been taken over several years before by The Wizard. Everyone sang the praises of the man. Sometimes it felt that she herself was the only person who truly saw the him for what he was.

She had truly lost everything now. Her sister was dead and her son…

Her son was dead because of the bastard Wizard.

For years she and others had attempted to take the Wizard down, but it seemed impossible. There was dark magic protecting him. She'd done her research and there was only one thing that could defeat him.

She had to kill him. She had to make him pay for what he'd done not only to her but to so many others…to her friends.

Why had it turned out this way?

She often found herself wondering what it would have been like if she hadn't been sent here to Oz. What if her parents had kept her? Why hadn't they?

She shook her head. Now was not the time to think about the past. No, it was time to plan her revenge against the Wizard. She only had one problem in this quest.

She would have to do things…things she could never come back from. Things she was fairly certain that she may not be able to follow through on. So there was only one thing she could do.

She closed her eyes for a brief moment, allowing the love for her son to fill her one last time. It was the only thing that she had to hold onto. She took a deep breath in and plunged her hand into her own chest. She pulled the glowing heart out and stared at it for a moment. She blinked her eyes waiting to feel the grief and sadness…but there was noting…she was empty.

She moved her hand to wipe the tear from her cheek that had fallen before her heart had been removed and walked to the box she'd laid on the table.

"Elphie?" She paused for a moment when she heard the voice from behind her.

"Go away." She told the woman without turning around.

"I was worried about you." The voice said from behind her.

Elphaba turned to glare at Glinda. "I think you have done enough."

The blonde woman gasped and moved forward. "Is that your heart?! Why would you do this?"

Elphaba flicked her hand toward the woman to freeze her in her tracks. "I'm going to kill the Wizard."

Glinda's eyes widened. "Elphie you know what you will need to do that…how can you…How will you even…" The girl stuttered.

"Why do you think I removed my heart?!" Elphaba snapped at her. "I can't do this with it."

"Elphie please think about what you are saying." Glinda pleaded. "Think about what you are planning to do!"

"Is it really so bad?" Elphaba countered. "He needs to die Glinda, as long as he is alive people with suffer."

"But there has to be another way!" Glinda argued.

"There isn't." Elphaba turned and placed her heart in the box. "Go, Glinda, don't try to come back here." She waved her hand towards the woman.

"Elphie please…" She heard as the blonde was overtaken with smoke and disappeared from sight.

Elphie sighed as she closed the lid to the box. "Soon my darling Lirr, I will avenge your death and everyone else who has died at the hands of that horrible man."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok so you guys have to leave me some reviews and tell me what you are thinking! Please! There will be more of Elphie's story to come and you will also learn what has caused her resentment for Regina and others. Remember she has no heart now so emotions like anger and bitterness have more room to grow. (Just a little spoiler for upcoming events)
> 
> I know there was no Regina and Robin in this chapter but there will be lots in the next one! Promise.
> 
> If you guys want to say hello on tumblr I am thequeenstolemyheart there as well. You can also find me on twitter. @mrsddixon


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Surprise! A new chapter after only one day! I have had most of this written for a while and because I made you guys wait so long for the last chapter I hoped this would make it up to you!
> 
> I kind of rushed through proof reading but I was excited to get this out to you so sorry if there are any mistakes.
> 
> Hope you all enjoy!

Emma, Henry and Regina pulled into town just minutes after the potion had been thrown into the well. What they found was mass panic. Everyone was running around looking for loved ones and terrified the witch may show up.

They got out of the car and immediately Emma heard her name called and turned to see her father rushing towards her. The second he arrived he pulled her into a bone crushing hug.

"I'm so glad you're back." He told her

She moved her arms up to hug him back. He pulled back when Henry walked up beside them and pulled the boy into a hug as well.

He looked back at Emma. "I can't find your mother."

Emma nodded. "We've been looking for her for days."

He shook his head. "I don't understand, she was right there with us." He looked up at Regina who walked around the car. "You saw her."

"I was holding on to her. She was brought here." Regina answered.

"Regina cast a spell that linked her and Snow to each other, but it won't work without magic." Emma explained. "We were trying to figure out how to bring magic back before we broke the curse and time started moving again, but the witch beat us to it. She's the one who broke it."

"Why would she want to break her own curse?" He asked.

Emma shook her heard. "We're not sure."

"Emma." Emma and Henry both turned at the voice behind them.

"Dad!" Henry wrapped his arms around Neal and Emma smiled.

Regina watched as her son and Emma were reunited with Neal. It might have irritated her when she was in Storybrook before, but after being in The Enchanted Forest with the man and getting to know him, she couldn't help but smile.

She turned to search the crowd. There were two faces she was interested in seeing. She looked at every face that lined the street. Robin was no where to be found. She found herself wishing she could talk to him…to just…say something…anything, but he wasn't there.

She spotted Little John standing with a band of the Merry Men and swallowed as she made her way to him. He glanced up as she approached.

"Your Majesty." he nodded his head.

Regina shook her head. "Regina." She told him. "I go by Regina here." She swallowed. "Is he?…where is he?"

He didn't have to ask who she was talking about. "He and I went to pick up Roland. He had left him with a friend and their parents after we played baseball in the park this afternoon."

Regina nodded. "Roland? Is he…is he ok?"

John shook his head. "He's pretty upset. When the curse broke Robin wasn't with him and…" He paused and looked down. "He was crying for you."

Regina's eyes instantly filled with tears and her heart lurched. He had wanted her? "Where is he?"

"Robin took him back to your house. He thought you may be there and maybe would have an idea what was going on." He told her.

Regina shook her head and laid a hand on his arm. "Thank you."

She walked back to Emma who was now talking with Ruby. Emma glanced up as she walked over. "Ruby is going to try to track my mother. We figure if we have some large groups looking then maybe we will have a better chance of finding her."

Regina nodded. "Emma I have to go back to my house. I need to see Roland." She gestured to John. "John said that he was crying for me when the curse broke."

Emma nodded in understanding. "Ok I will keep you updated on what's happening."

Regina smiled and turned toward Henry who was still talking with Neal. "Sweetheart. I have to run home for a while. Roland and Robin are there and I need to talk to them" She told him.

Henry nodded. "Can I stay with you tonight?" he wanted to know.

Regina smiled at the thought of having him home with her. "I would love that." she looked at Neal who looked a bit disappointed that his time with Henry would be cut so short. "Why don't you catch up with your father for a while and he can bring you by later." she smiled at him. The truth was she had no idea what she would find when she got home. Would they already be gone?

Henry looked unsure for a moment, but then nodded. "Ok, I'll see you in a little while."

Regina smiled and pulled him into a hug. "I love you" She placed a kiss to his head.

XXXXXXXX

Regina arrived at the mansion and looked around the foyer. Three days ago this had been a home full of love and laughter, but now…now she wasn't sure what it would be.

She swallowed and pulled the door shut. She shed her heels and walked towards the living room. That is where she found them. Robin was sitting on the couch holding a crying Roland to him. It seemed as if the boy had been sobbing for a while because his cries had turned into small hiccups. She took a breath.

"Hi." Really? That was all she could say?

Robin's head snapped up from looking down at his son even as Roland scrambled off his lap.

"Mommy!" The boy ran to her sobbing anew and Regina lifted him into her arms. She held him close as he buried his face into her neck. "I didn't know where you were Mommy, and when the green smoke came and everyone membered Josh told me that you weren't my Mommy, but I don't want to go back to before…" He cried.

"Oh sweetheart." Regina looked up to find Robin looking at both of them still having said nothing. Regina swallowed and gently rocked Roland back and forth. "I'm here now baby."

"Do you promise you won't go anywhere?" He asked.

"I promise, I'm going to stay right here with you darling, there's no need to cry." She soothed him. She walked to the couch to sit with him. She couldn't seem to look Robin in the eye so instead she rocked him gently speaking reassurances in his ear until she felt him relax against her. It wasn't long before he had fallen fast asleep.

When she felt his breath even out against her neck she finally dared to look at Robin. He was looking at them both with sadness. She swallowed, "I'm going to go lay him down upstairs." She told him.

Robin nodded and looked down at the floor.

When Regina walked back down the stairs she was nervous. What was he going to say to her? Would he take Roland and leave? She walked back into the living room to find him still on the couch.

She took a breath and then asked. "Are you ok?"

He glanced back up at her and shook his head. "I guess that depends on your definition of ok." He answered.

Regina walked into the room and took a seat on the opposite end of the couch.

"I'm assuming that the Henry and Emma that are here are the Henry and Emma. Your son and the Savior." He said.

Regina nodded. "Yes."

"How long have you known?" He asked.

Regina shook her head and looked down at her hands. "A couple of days. Hook left the Enchanted Forest and found Emma and Henry. He gave them a memory potion to give to me.

"Did you break the curse?" He asked.

"No, the witch did…we're not sure why." She anticipated his next question. "We were at the well trying to figure out how to break the curse and bring back magic."

"Is magic not back as well?" he asked.

Regina shook her head. "We hoped to find a way to bring it back before the curse broke, but she broke it first."

"Why did you want to bring it back before the curse broke?" He wanted to know.

"Because Snow is missing and we need it to help find her." She explained. "Remember the spell I cast on you and Roland in the Enchanted Forest?" When he nodded she continued. "Well I cast the same spell on myself and Snow when I realized that the witch wanted Snow's baby, but it won't work without magic."

"Storybrook is a small town." He answered, "Surely we can find her if we form search parties."

Regina smiled slightly. "I hope so."

Robin looked back up at her. "Did you mean it?"

Regina furrowed her brow. "Did I mean what?"

"What you said to Roland about not leaving?" He explained and shrugged, "Now that you have your son back I wasn't sure if…well if you still wanted to be in Roland's life."

Her heart picked up. "How can you even ask me that? Of course I want to be in his life. I love him."

He looked back up at her. "I'm sorry…" He shook his head and looked back down at his hands. "I know you do…I mean…I know you love him."

Regina looked down again. "I wasn't sure you would want me to be."

Robin shook his head. "You're the only mother he's ever known…taking that from him now that he has two different lifetimes in his head would crush him. I could never do that to him…or you."

Regina looked up at him when he said those words. "I do love him Robin, I want nothing more then to be in his life."

Robin looked at her and he waited…he hoped she might say more, perhaps that there were feelings for him as well, perhaps that she wanted to be in his life too, but she said nothing more. Of course she didn't feel that way. Being Roland's mother for all this time could certainly make her love the little boy but it would hardly cause her to fall in love…with him of all people. She was a queen and he a thief, to think that she may actually love him…well it was ridiculous. A curse couldn't make you love someone. The rules of magic were clear, it can't make anyone fall in love.

He nodded. "I um…how do you want to work out living arrangements?" He asked. "I understand if you would rather I didn't live here, but with Roland…I'm not sure he will be happy about leaving you even part time right now, and it will take time to find a place."

Regina's heart nearly broke. Of course he would want to leave…it wasn't as if he was in love with her. They were friends at best. "Um…You are welcome to stay as long as you want…There's plenty of space and with everything that's happened it wouldn't be fair to take Roland from his home…"

Robin nodded in agreement. "I could take a guest bedroom for now."

Regina swallowed suddenly wanting to cry. "Yes, that would work. I think it's best for now, moving would be to hard on Roland…and it's not as if we don't get along."

Robin nodded, not wanting to think about the fact that he would be living with her, but no longer as husband and wife. "I will clear my clothes out of the closet and move into one of the bedrooms."

Regina sighed. "Henry will be staying some too…he's coming by tonight actually."

"Of course." Robin smiled a little. "I'm glad you got him back Regina."

Regina smiled back at him. "Me too."

XXXXXXXX

Regina rolled over in bed and let out a breath. She hadn't realized how much she'd come to rely on Robin being there. She missed his arms around her, the safety she felt in them…the warmth that enveloped her when she was with him.

Henry had gotten there a little after her and Robin's talk. Their meeting had gone well…obviously it wasn't their first meeting, but it was the first where Robin actually remembered who he was. Robin had been amazingly patient with him considering the stress they were all under. He'd answered all of his questions about Robin's many adventures and set the record straight on some of the stories.

Robin had been amazed to find that there were stories of him in this land. Of course his cursed self had known the stories of Robin Hood, but now that he had his memories back he was more interested then ever.

Henry had also been a bit nicer to Roland today. Regina wasn't sure if it was the tear marks that stained the little boy's face or the puffy eyes, but Henry had given the boy some attention and Roland seemed to enjoy having Henry around.

She hadn't expected Roland to take this so hard, but maybe she should have. It was true that she was the only mother he'd ever known. He'd said over and over that night that he didn't want things to go back they way there were. He wanted to keep her as Mommy. He'd even said he wanted to forget his other memories again. The poor baby had these two lifetimes in his head and he couldn't understand what was real anymore, and more then anything he was terrified of losing her.

She was happy that Robin had agreed to allow her to be in his life. She wasn't sure she could have handled losing Roland. It was hard enough losing Robin.

She wasn't exactly sure what she thought would happen or what she had expected from him. Had she truly thought he would open his arms for her to fall into and declare his undying love for her? Of course he wouldn't. She was The Evil Queen and as much as she loathed that title it didn't change anything…it didn't change who she was or what she had done in her past. No one in their right mind could ever love someone like her…at least not in the romantic way. No one.

She turned over seeking warmth that was no longer there. She sighed. She knew that eventually she would get used to this again…she'd slept alone a long time. It would just be a matter of time until she would forget how it felt to have his strong arms around her, how it felt to be safe and warm…how it felt when he placed a kiss to her neck, or her lips, the way he would touch her body.

She buried her face in the pillow nearly letting out a scream. She had to stop this. She couldn't think about him anymore. They may have been fated to be together years ago, but that was before she had become what she was, before she'd done all that she'd done as The Evil Queen.

A man like Robin could never be with someone like that, he could never love someone who had done the things she had in her life.

She was lucky to have Henry and Roland. The two of them loved her and she could be happy having only them. She could be truly content with just her boys.

She shot up in bed when she heard the scream. She was out of the bed like a shot and she and Robin nearly crashed into each other in the hallway. The scream coming from Roland's room was ear piercing and much worse then his regular nightmare scream. They both turned to Roland's door and Regina pushed it open. Even as Henry walked into the hallway from his room. Robin flipped on the lights as Regina made her way to the bed and wrapped her arms around the screaming boy who instantly climbed into her lap.

She smoothed the hair back from his face and kissed his forehead. "What is it sweetheart?"

"The Wicked Witch took you and hurt you Mommy…I couldn't find you, I looked and looked and I was yelling for you, and then I woke up and there was a monster looking in my window." The little boy sobbed into her chest.

"It's ok sweetheart. Everything is ok now." She told him looking up at Robin who looked heart broken at the pain and fear his son was experiencing. "I'm right here, it was just a dream."

"Can I sleep with you tonight?" The little boy whimpered into her chest.

"Of course you can angel." Regina stood with him in her arms.

Roland looked at Robin and his lip quivered. "Daddy will you chase the monster away from the window?"

Robin leaned in and kissed Roland's forehead. "You bet I will buddy."

Regina smiled at Henry as she neared the door and he continued to watch. "Is he ok?" He wanted to know.

"He will be, he just needs to get some sleep." She leaned in and placed a kiss to his head. "So do you."

Henry smiled and nodded. "Goodnight Roland."

"Night Henry" The little boy said sleepily into his mother's chest.

Robin watched as Regina and Roland left the room. He walked to the window to check it as he'd promised his son, truthfully now that they all remembered where they were from monsters weren't exactly fictional anymore. He checked the window to make sure it was locked then walked back out of the room flipping the light as he went. He didn't really expect to get sleep tonight. He'd been tossing and turning when he'd heard Roland cry out.

He hadn't realized just how reliant he'd become to Regina cuddling up to him in sleep. He missed her warmth, her soft breathing. He missed the way she would wrap her arms around his waist as he held her. He missed everything about her really.

He shook his head in an attempt to clear his thoughts. They had been cursed. She didn't actually love him. She loved Roland…she wanted to be a mother to Roland. That was enough. It had to be.

XXXXXXXX

Henry awoke the next morning with what seemed to be a million different thoughts running through his head.

He was worried about his Grandmother. The search the night before had turned up nothing new. Where could she be and what did the Wicked Witch want with her? Why did everything in his family always have to be so complicated? Why couldn't they just all be happy?

Being back here reminded him a lot of his childhood. He and his mother had their problems after he grew a bit older. He'd been angry with her for a long time about lying to him, but it hadn't always been bad between them. When he was younger they'd had so much fun together. She'd been his entire world and he'd loved her more then anything. When he'd remembered their life together he'd been desperate to get back to her.

When he first arrived and saw that she had a new family he'd been so jealous. Watching her with Roland had been hard. It had reminded Henry of his own childhood and had made him want her back that much more.

When he'd arrived at the mansion the night before and saw that Robin and Roland were still living there he hadn't known what to think. He had thought they would probably move out…go back to the woods…or do whatever it was they did, but there they had been getting ready to have dinner with him and his mother.

His jealousy had wanted to flare up again until he'd noticed Roland's puffy eyes and they way he'd clung to Regina. The kid had been pretty upset. Henry could understand what it was like to have different memories in your head, but it had to be a bit harder for a child as young as Roland was.

He'd felt like even more of a jerk when the boy had woken in the middle of the night screaming. He'd thought someone had broken into the house and was actually hurting him. When he'd watched his mother comfort him he'd expected to feel jealousy again, but instead he'd just felt awful. Awful for the little boy who was afraid of losing the only mother he'd ever known, awful for his Mother who was doing her best to reassure him, and awful for the Father who'd had to watch knowing that it was not him that was able to comfort his child through this.

The whole situation was really devastating.

That was why when he'd woken this morning he'd made a vow to himself to be nicer to the little boy. The kid pretty much idolized him, all he had to do to make him smile was tell him that he thought his room was cool. How hard could it be to get him laughing again?

He made his way downstairs to the smell of breakfast cooking. He passed the living room where Roland was laying on the couch watching a cartoon that he really didn't seem to be interested in and was instead just staring off into space as if he was in deep thought. He made his way to the kitchen to find his Mother making breakfast.

"Hey Mom." He stated and walked around the counter to hug her.

"Hey sweetheart." She leaned in to kiss his forehead.

Henry glanced around. "Where's Robin?"

Regina looked back at the stove. "He's gone to help with the search for Snow. He's a good tracker so he thought he may be able to help."

Henry nodded. "Are you going out later?"

Regina smiled down at her son. "I had originally thought I would, but Roland has asked me to stay with him today."

"I guess the kid's pretty upset huh?" He asked.

"He is." Regina confirmed. "He doesn't understand any of this."

Henry nodded. "Do you mind if I hang out with you guys today?"

Regina smiled down at him. "Of course not." She told him. "I always want to spend more time with you."

Henry smiled. "I'm gonna go hang with Roland until breakfast is ready."

Regina smiled and leaned in to place another kiss to his head. "Thank you."

Henry shrugged. "No problem."

He walked back into the living room to find Roland in the same position he had been if before.

"Hey Roland." Henry said as he walked into the room.

Roland looked up at him from his position on the couch. "Hi Henry."

The kid was definitely not his typical enthusiastic self. "Whatcha watching?"

Roland gave a little shrug from his position on the couch. "Scooby Doo."

Henry smiled. "I love Scooby Doo." He told him as he sat down. Getting no reaction he thought he would try a new tactic. "You wanna read a comic book?" Henry asked. "I have a few new ones with me."

The boy shook his head but sat up. "Maybe later."

Maybe this wouldn't be as easy as he'd originally thought. Henry thought to himself.

"You're lucky." Roland told him.

"Why is that?" Henry asked.

"Because Mommy is your real Mommy and you don't ever have to worry she will go away." He told him.

Henry stared at him for a minute not really sure what to say, but finally decided to go with his heart. "You don't have to worry she will go away either Roland."

Roland looked up at Henry with eyes verging on tears. "When I was at Josh's house yesterday his brother and him said she wasn't my Mommy and she would probably leave now that everyone remembered."

"Well, those two guys don't know my…our Mom." Henry told him. "She's your real Mom too Roland."

Roland shook his head. "She didn't have me in her tummy."

Henry nodded. "No…but I wasn't in her tummy either."

The boy's eyes grew a bit wide at that revelation. "You weren't?"

"Nope." Henry answered. "I grew in Emma's tummy, but she couldn't take care of me so Mom adopted me."

"What's dopted?" He asked.

Henry smiled a little. "It's when a Mommy promises to take care of you and be a Mommy to you because your birth mom couldn't do it."

"My Mommy that had me in her tummy is in heaven." Roland said sadly. "I don't want to go back to the old memories where I didn't our Mommy."

"Well see…that the thing." Henry told him. "Our Mom is your Mommy too. She takes care of you because your Mommy that had you can't." Henry reached a hand out and ruffled the boy's hair. "Carrying their children in their tummy isn't what makes a person a Mommy."

"What does?" Roland asked.

Henry shrugged. "Carrying your children in your heart." He told him. "And Mom has both of us in her heart."

Roland smiled a bit at Henry before launching himself at him. Henry laughed but caught the boy and hugged him back.

Regina stood at the doorway to the living room with tears rolling down her face. As awful as spending the night without Robin had been, she knew she could get through it. She was right the night before. Her boys were the joy of her life. She may miss Robin, but she could find happiness with just her boys. She had no doubt.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please Review! I would really love to know what you thought of this chapter now that everyone has their memories back. I know it was angsty but, you gotta go through the angst before you can get to the good stuff right.
> 
> I would really, really love to know what you all think. I am pretty excited now that we are at this part of the story.


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much to everyone who read/followed/reviewed the last chapter. Hope you enjoy this one!

Regina pulled into the driveway after a long day spent at the office. It had been nearly a month since the curse has broken and since then everyone had been trying to get back to normal.

They still had not found Snow White despite the fact that there were search parties sent out daily. The same areas has been searched dozens of times and still they had found nothing. The witch had to have some sort of a vault as Regina had when she'd cast the first curse. Even though there hadn't been magic her vault had still been somewhat magically protected. The witch had to have something similar, but it was beginning to seem that it would be impossible to find.

Regina couldn't help but worry. In their time in the Enchanted Forest she and Snow had grown close again…well as close as Regina would allow anyone to get to her anyway. The truth was that she loved her former step daughter and wanted nothing more then to see her again and know she was safe.

Then there was the witch. No one has seen her since the day she had broken the curse. It was as if she had just vanished along with Snow White. Where they even in Storybrook anymore?

Emma had moved back in with her father and Henry back to the mansion. They planned to visit custody at a later date, when Emma had her own place, but for now this seemed to work out well. There was plenty of room at the mansion. Emma and David spent much of their time looking for Snow so it also seemed safer for Henry to stay with Regina at the moment. He was much better off having someone who could look after him full time. Especially not knowing where the witch was or what her next move may be. He had spent most weekends with Emma and Charming and he seemed to be adjusting fairly well to this schedule.

Roland's nightmares seemed to be getting better. For the first week the curse had broken he'd clung to Regina as if she were a life line. He had been terrified he would lose her somehow. He still didn't want to talk much about his life before. It was as if he was afraid if he admitted he had a life before that he would lose the one he had now. Anytime it was brought up he insisted he didn't want to remember the life where Regina wasn't his Mother.

She and Robin had managed to live together for a month without any issues. Truthfully they rarely saw each other. Regina worked at the office during the day and Robin took second shift at the station. They'd worked out this schedule so that one of them would always be home with the boys. It was working out well and the boys seemed to be happy with it.

Not seeing him that often had made it a bit easier for her. Every time they spent any amount of time together at all it made Regina miss everything about him. When she was with him she just wanted to walk into his arms and be held there forever. She longed for the warmth and safety she felt for all of those months she has spent as his wife.

Every now and then when they were together she would catch him looking at her as if he wanted nothing more then to pull her into his arms. She could see the sadness in eyes, but she always had to remind herself that the sadness wasn't there for her. It was for the woman who she had been under the curse. The person she really was wasn't like that woman.

She suspected that the looks of sadness that she saw in his face was because he was mourning that woman. The woman he really loved. Not her. No one could ever love her that way.

She leaned her head against the car seat and let out a breath. It was time to put her happy face on. Both of them had done their absolute best to make things as normal for Henry and Roland as possible. They wanted more then anything to make sure that the boys felt safe and secure in their home.

She stepped out of the car and walked up the walkway to the door. When she entered she stepped out of her heels and let out a small sigh of relief. She'd been on her feet most of the day.

She walked into the kitchen to set down her things and she heard laughs coming from the basement. She smiled a little when she heard Roland let out a huge belly laugh followed by a shout and another laugh from Henry. That was a sound she didn't hear nearly often enough these days. She made her way down the stairs to see just what it was that was making her boys so happy. She caught sight of them half way down and found Robin holding both boys upside down while each of them were swinging Nerf swords trying to get to him.

None of them had noticed her presence yet so she leaned against the wall with a grin on her face as she watched them play. She watched as he swung Roland out and the younger boy landed on the couch sending him into fits of laughter once again, then he did the same with Henry who immediately bounced up and began to go at Robin with his sword again.

There was a time Regina may have warned them about jumping around on the furniture, but they were having so much fun she couldn't allow herself to interfere. She just watched as they continued their game. She let out a laugh when Roland stood on the couch and jumped onto Robin's back screaming he would never let an ogre win.

At the sound of her laugh Roland turned his head and noticed her standing there for the first time. "Mommy! You can't be here!" He said dramatically. "We're protecting you from the Ogre!"

"Oh so this is the princess you are protecting?" Robin said with a grin and managed to pull Roland off his back and swing him onto the couch again sending the boy back into fits of laughter.

"We won't let you get her you mean Ogre!" Roland shouted. "Me and Sir Henry will protect her."

Henry and Robin began to duel with their swords while Roland cheered on from the couch. Regina watched as her son dueled. He was actually quite good. She suspected this was a game that Robin played with them often. She watched as Henry pivoted and left one side unprotected. Robin took advantage and poked his side with the Nerd blade. She grinned as she watched Henry clutch his side dramatically and fall next to her.

He held up his sword. "Take it, don't allow him to capture you." He had a small smile on his face obviously laying on the dramatics for Roland's sake.

Regina did her best to keep a straight face as well and took the sword from him. She leaned in and placed a kiss to his head. "Thank you for fighting so valiantly Sir Henry."

She turned to Robin with a grin when he raised an eyebrow. "Obviously you have no idea who you are dealing with." She told him. "I am quite skilled with a sword."

"Really?" He asked. "I wouldn't think a princess would know much about swords." He grinned as she circled him.

"I've been taught well." She told him as she took her first swing which he easily blocked. They began to cross blades as Roland cheered from the couch. Henry had sat up from his position of "death" so he could watch the duel as well.

Robin grinned as Regina crossed blades with his. She was amazing. He found himself wondering where she had learned to fight so well. He took advantage of her distraction when she turned to look at Roland. He threw his sword down and snaked out one arm to capture her around the waist. He managed to grab her sword out of her hand. And she yelped when he lifted her off the ground.

He looked at Roland who had yelled out a warning a bit to late and let out a laugh. "It looks as if I have your princess now."

"You cheated!" Regina laughed out even as she held on to his shoulders.

"There are no rules when it comes to fighting for princesses." he grinned at her. "And I got the girl." He pointed out.

She laughed and shook her head. "Idiot."

He continued to smile. "Still got the girl."

It was then as they both stared into each others faces they realized just how close they were. Robin was holding Regina too him with her feet off the ground and Regina had her arms wrapped around his shoulders. Their teasing grins died as they looked into each others eyes.

How long had it been Regina wondered since she had been pressed against him like this? He heart rate increased and she found her self wanting to stay here…wanting to linger. She wanted to lower her mouth and take his lips in a slow kiss as she would have done once before.

She licked her lips then cleared her throat. "I should probably start dinner."

Robin nodded and set her gently on her feet already missing the warmth of her body against his when she stepped away. When turned back to the boys he saw Roland had been distracted by a cartoon, but Henry was studying him carefully.

Robin gave the boy a smile before saying "I have to head to work guys. Keep practicing your sword skills and we will meet up again tomorrow."

He turned to walk up the stairs. When he arrived in the kitchen he found Regina removing contents of the fridge for dinner.

"I'm heading into work." He told her.

She turned to face him and nodded. "I'll save a plate for you."

He nodded. It was something she did every night for him. "Thanks." He cleared his throat and started to speak but then couldn't find the courage to say it.

Regina turned back to begin preparing dinner but could still feel him watching her.

Robin stood absolutely still. He wanted to say something. He wanted to talk to her. He wanted to tell her that the few seconds he'd had her in his arms just now had been the best two seconds of the last month, but she didn't feel the same. She didn't want him in that way.

Regina turned when she still felt him continue to look at her. "What?" She asked.

Robin shook his head slowly. "Nothing." He began to walk out of the kitchen but stopped and turned back to her. "Is there nothing about us that you miss? Nothing about me?"

He watched as Regina's back went stiff, but she didn't turn to him.

"Because I miss everything about you." He told her.

Regina's heart caught at his words and she turned to face him. She looked into his eyes for a moment. "It isn't me that you miss Robin. I'm not that woman."

Robin shook his head. "It's you that I miss Regina."

She could see the pain in his eyes, the longing to pull her into his arms. "Robin, I…"

"Never mind." Robin shook his head. "I shouldn't have said anything." He turned to walk out of the kitchen.

Regina told herself to say something. She told herself to stop him, but she let him walk away. A tear fell down her cheek when she heard the front door close.

XXXXXXXX

Emma arrived for dinner that night to find a quiet Regina and two very chatty boys. She'd been having dinner at the mansion a couple times a week. It gave her the opportunity to see Henry and also gave she and Regina the chance to talk about strategy in the fight against this wicked witch, but seeing as Regina wasn't really that talkative this evening she instead filled her time with Henry and Roland.

It had been really hard for her to give up living with Henry full time. After being with only each other and a lifetime of memories raising him in her head it made it even harder.

But those were Regina's memories she reminded herself, not hers. Henry had wanted to come back to the home he'd grown up in and now she understood why. Regina and Henry had a great life together before he'd gotten the book. She was his mother and he loved her. Emma had a hard time at first figuring out why Henry's false memories didn't resonate with him as much as they did with her, but she supposed it was because he actually knew the real memories. The ones where it had been Regina to do all those things that she remembered doing.

She'd had a hard time every since she'd come back. Her mother was missing and every day they didn't find her was another day that Emma feared they wouldn't. They'd been looking for a month. They'd searched every where in Storybrook, including the house that the witch had lived in before the curse broke. They'd found nothing. Not even a trace of her mother.

Hook was still around, but now so was Neal and both had made it perfectly clear they wanted more then just friendship from her. Emma couldn't even think about a relationship right now. Not with her mother missing, a wicked witch on the lose and the fact that she had recently had to give up the majority of time with her son. Emma wasn't sure she would ever be ready to give her heart again. Every time she even entertained the thought of trying she ended up losing.

"And then Mommy fought Daddy with the sword, but Daddy cheated and captured Mommy." Roland finished telling her.

Emma grinned and looked at Regina who still looked incredibly distracted. "I had no idea you knew how to use a sword."

Regina snapped out of her thoughts and looked up at Emma. "My father taught me when I was young." She told her and shook her head. "Mother hated it because it wasn't something a lady should do with her time, but I always enjoyed the lessons." She smiled at Roland. "I would have won today if a certain little boy hadn't distracted me."

Roland grinned. "Sorry Mommy. I won't next time I promise."

Regina smiled at him before standing to clear the table. "Then next time I shall prevail."

Emma stood with her and helped to carry plates into the kitchen. Regina turned when she saw her walk in. "Emma I can take care of this. Why don't you go and spend sometime with Henry? I know you miss him." She smiled at her. No one knew better then she did what it was like to be separated from your child.

"I don't mind to help." Emma protested.

"I know you don't, but Henry misses you too. Go spend time with him." she smiled "I'll finish up in here."

Emma smiled at her and turned to leave the room but paused. "Regina?"

Regina turned with an eyebrow raised in question.

"Are you ok?" Emma asked. "You seem a little off tonight."

Regina smiled, but it didn't reach her eyes. "I'm fine." she told her. "I just have a lot on my mind."

Emma smiled and nodded. "Ok…well, if you need to talk, I'm here." She offered.

"Thank you." Regina smiled back at her. "But this is one I have to work out on my own."

Emma nodded and walked out of the room.

Regina turned back to the dishes wishing that she knew how to work this one out. So far she'd managed to come up with nothing.

XXXXXXXX

After tucking Roland in to bed Regina walked back down the stairs to find Henry sitting on the couch playing one of his video games.

"Hey Mom." He said when she walked into the room.

"Hi son." She smiled and sat next to him on the couch looking over his shoulder at his game. She was so happy to have him back with her. She'd honestly thought when she'd let him go that she would never see him again. The last month with him had been everything she'd ever wanted and everything that she'd one day hoped she would get back.

When he failed the level he was on he lowered his game and looked up at her.

"Did you have a nice time with Emma tonight?" She asked.

"Yeah." he told her. "It's nice that you guys are kind of friends now." He smiled. "That way I can have both of you."

Regina raised her hand to his hair and pushed it back from his forehead. "I'm sorry I ever made you feel you had to chose." she leaned in and placed a kiss to his head. "I love you so much Henry."

He smiled. "I love you too Mom." He paused for a moment. "Mom?"

"Hmm?" She asked.

"Do you love Robin?" He asked.

Regina blinked for a moment. "I…" she stopped trying to find the right words.

"You don't have to tell me." He said.

"No, Henry I want to tell you, but honestly I don't really have an answer…" She paused and looked at her son. "I care about him, and I miss him."

"I think he loves you." Henry told her.

"He loves the woman he thought I was Henry, but that woman isn't me." She told him.

"But she is you Mom…or you're her." Henry told her. "The way you were when you were cursed was the way you were with me when I was a kid."

Regina shook her head. "Except that the cursed woman hadn't done the things I have done Henry." She raised her hand to touch his face. "It would be impossible for someone to love someone like me."

"I love you." He told her. "Roland loves you, why do you think that Robin couldn't."

She smiled at her little boy who wasn't so little anymore. "You and Roland are young and more forgiving."

"I've seen the way he looks at you Mom. He has feelings for you." Henry told her. "You should tell him how you feel."

"I can't Henry." She shared. "There is enough going on with out complicating everything with my feelings for him."

"But if you could be happy together…" Henry told her and took her hand. "I want you to be happy Mom."

She smiled and squeezed his hand. "I am happy." She told him. "With you and Roland."

Henry rolled his eyes. "You know what I mean Mom…I know your scared, but you will never be happy if you don't take a chance and trust him. He won't hurt you."

"Not on purpose." Regina agreed.

"You should talk to him." He repeated.

Regina smiled and shook her head at her son. "You're growing up to fast."

He grinned back at her. "You should listen to me…my Mom has always told me I'm brilliant."

Regina laughed and pulled him into a hug.

XXXXXXXX

Robin arrived home after spending half the night looking for Snow. They search everyday until the sun goes down. After he'd returned to the station to work on the paperwork that had been piling up.

He didn't want to say it to David, but he was beginning to lose hope in finding Snow. They had literally looked everywhere several times over. Regina's belief was that wherever she was it was magically hidden as her own vault had been when she cast the curse originally.

He let himself into the house and made his way into the kitchen. He had gotten used to the late night shift. He'd been working it since the curse had broken so that someone would always be home with the boys. Neither he or Regina had been comfortable with leaving them with others, unless it was Emma or John.

He moved to the stove where he found a plate waiting for him. He pulled up the foil to find Chicken Enchilada's. He popped them in the microwave and then pulled up the lid on the Tupperware that was sitting beside his plate. He grinned when he saw a batch of no bake cookies…his absolute favorite. He popped one into his mouth and nearly moaned at the sweet chocolate and peanut butter treat.

When the timer went off he pulled his food from the microwave and sat at the island to eat his meal.

He'd been kicking himself all day for what he'd said to Regina earlier. Leave it to him to mess up a good thing. Up until this point they'd managed to get along and things had been good. After what he'd said this afternoon though he feared that now it would be awkward with her.

He hadn't been able to help himself. He missed her so much that sometimes when he saw her he found it hard to breathe. All he wanted was to hold her, kiss her…make love to her again. He missed the late night talks and her smile. Seeing her smile earlier that day had made his heart soar and holding her close to him, just for a moment it had felt as if nothing had changed, until he realized that everything had changed.

He stood to rinse off his plate then made his way back to the cookies to help himself to a couple more.

He glanced up when he heard footsteps come into the kitchen and his heart leaped when he saw her, just as it always did.

"Hi." she said to him

"Hey." He said back hoping this conversation wouldn't be awkward. "I was just enjoying your cookies."

She smiled. "Your favorite." She walked towards the kitchen island. "I made them for you."

He looked up at her in surprise and raised a brow. "You didn't make them for the boys?"

She shook her head. "No, I made them after they went to bed."

He smiled. "Thank you."

Regina swallowed. It had taken her nearly twenty minutes to work up the nerve to come down here, then she'd stood at the bottom of the stairs for nearly ten trying to talk herself into just forgetting it and going back upstairs. He turned to set the Tupperware back on the counter and that seemed like the best time to speak up. When he wasn't looking at her.

"I miss how you always kept me warm." she told him.

Robin blinked and turned around to face her. "You miss my body heat?" He asked.

Regina looked down and shook her head. She was terrible at this.

Robin watched her. His heart had leaped at her words. She missed something…that was a start. He started to speak but she continued.

"I just miss how safe and warm I always felt…I…" She let out a frustrated breath and decided to just say it. "It's cold tonight."

Robin continued to look at her for a moment. "It is chilly." He said not really sure where she was going with this but he hoped…he hoped…

"I haven't been able to get warm all day. It seems I'm cold a lot these days…without you there." She said and took a step forward but still not looking him in the eye.

"Regina, what are you asking me?" He asked her.

"Nothing." She said quickly. "I'm just telling you that I miss your…" She paused again "I miss having your arms around me." She finally looked up at him.

There were unshed tears shinning in her eyes and he tentatively reached out a hand to brush down the side of her face.

"There's so much I miss about you Robin." She said and one of the tears spilled over.

Robin brought his other hand up to her waist and pulled her into him. She buried her face into his neck and wrapped her arms around him as he brought his around her. Finally here it was. The safety she'd longed to feel since all of this started. The warmth the love, everything. It didn't change that she still didn't believe he could possibly love her. She was still fully convinced that he loved the cursed version of herself, but here for a moment she could feel safe and warm.

She felt him place a kiss against the side of her head as he pulled his arms tighter. "I miss you Regina…so much"

She ran her hand along his back then pulled back so she could look at him. "Will you hold me tonight?"

He smiled at her and pulled her back into him for another moment. "I would like nothing more then to hold you tonight."

She smiled and pulled back to take his hand. They walked upstairs together flipping off the lights as they went. When they got upstairs Robin went to his bedroom to get his pajama pants. When he returned he found Regina already laying in bed waiting for him. He pulled back the covers on his side and slid in beside her. He reached to turn off the bedroom lamp and turned back to her.

She took his hand into hers and rolled on her side with her back to him. He scooted himself so that he was against her back and tightened his arm around her waist.

For the first time in a month Regina felt herself fully relax. She instantly felt herself drifting off to sleep in the safety and warmth of his arms.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I really hope you all enjoyed this chapter! Please review and tell me what you thought!
> 
> So is everyone fangirling over Sunday's show? Because OMG I am! She gave him her heart!
> 
> Stop by and see me one tumblr if you want to chat about it! I'm thequeenstolemyheart. You can also find me on twitter. @mrsddixon


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all so much for your reviews and comments that I have received here and on tumblr. You keep me motivated! Love you all and hope you enjoy this chapter!

Regina made her way down the stairs after waking the boys for school. It had been a little over a week since she and Robin had talked and he'd spent every night since holding her in his arms. They didn't talk about it and it wasn't even a question. They did nothing else but hold each other. Every night since the night they talked she would wait for him to get home and he would wrap her into his arms and hold her through the night.

The last week had been the best sleep Regina had gotten since they'd been apart.

She wasn't sure where either of them expected it to go, she wasn't even sure how she felt about it. On one hand she knew that in his arms was the only place she wanted to be but on the other she was terrified of the day that he would remember who she really was and want to pull away from her. She was spending most of this time waiting for the other shoe to drop.

There had also been the light touches. The gentle caress of her arm or her hand. He would sometimes lay a hand on her shoulder. Those touches never ceased to make her long for more. Every time he touched her like that she wanted to wrap herself into his arms and stay forever.

She moved to the coffee pot and began the process of making coffee. Afterwards she moved to the cabinet to pull out the cereal. Typically she preferred to make a hot breakfast for the boys, but this morning she'd lingered in Robin's arms a bit longer causing them to now all be running late.

"Good Morning." Robin said from the door.

He'd also woken up at the normal time, but had chosen to linger in bed with her longer. The smell of her hair, the feel of her body cuddled up to his as he spooned her was absolute bliss and he'd wanted to feel it for as long as she allowed him to.

He'd known she was awake, just as he was sure she'd known he was as well, but they had both been content to lay next to each other wishing things were different. Wishing they could somehow go back to what had once been.

"Good Morning." She answered. "The coffee's almost ready."

"Need any help?" He asked as he walked up behind her and placed his hands lightly on her shoulders. He couldn't stop himself from touching her. He wanted to spend an entire day wrapped in each others arms. He was grateful for the fact that he now had the opportunity to hold her at night, but it only caused him to long for more. He wanted that connection back with her. The one where he could pull her against him in the middle of the day and she would stay willingly in his arms.

Regina closed her eyes at the feel of his hands on her shoulders and for a moment allowed herself to lean into him hoping for just a moment that he would wrap his arms around her once again.

Robin's heart leapt when she leaned into him and couldn't seem to stop himself from wrapping his arms around her. Jesus he loved this woman so much it made it hard to breathe sometimes.

Regina let out a sigh when his arms came around her and she only wanted to feel more. She didn't know what it was that was causing her to long to be held so much. Perhaps it was the growing hopelessness of never finding Snow, or perhaps it was the fact that no matter how much she told herself it wasn't true…that she was being ridiculous...she was completely in love with him. Spending a week of nights in his arms only made the feeling stronger.

She turned in his arms and wrapped herself around his waist as she rested her head against his shoulder enjoying the feel of him lightly caressing her hair with one hand while gently rubbing her back with the other.

She wanted to stay like this. She wanted him to hold her like this everyday for the rest of her life…that wasn't to much to ask was it?

Her heart began pounding when she felt him place a soft kiss against her hair and she shifted so she could look at him. They stared into each others eyes for a moment until Regina could hear her heart pounding in her ears. The only thing she wanted in that moment was for him to lean in and kiss her. She wanted to feel his lips against hers.

"You are so beautiful." He lifted a hand to her face and lightly rubbed his thumb along her cheek.

His heart pounded as he began to lean in. He let out a small breath when his lips very lightly grazed hers.

"Mom?!" Henry called from the foyer. "Have you seen my shoes?"

They sprung apart having forgotten completely where they were and that they were all in fact running late.

Regina blinked and cleared her throat. "Check the basement." Regina called back.

She leaned back against the counter as Robin took a step back. Henry came barreling through the kitchen and opened the door to the basement. "Thanks Mom!" He called back to her as she heard him trample down the stairs.

"Mommy I can't find my Batman shirt?" Roland walked into kitchen bare chested and holding his shoes in his hand.

"That's because it is in the dirty clothes." She told him. "You wore it yesterday sweetheart."

"But I want to wear it again today." He complained.

"Darling it's dirty, you will have to pick a different one." She told him as Robin took the cereal bowls from her and sat them on the table.

"But I don't want to wear a different one!" He answered. He tended to be a bit grouchy in the morning and typically needed a little more time to wake up then he had been given today.

"Honey, that shirt is dirty you will have to pick out something else." Regina told him.

"Yeah" Henry said as he came up the stairs. "You can't wear the same shirt everyday. It's lame."

"I'm not lame!" Roland shouted at Henry and turned back to Regina. "I want my Batman shirt!" He stomped his foot.

"Roland enough." Robin said from the table. "You don't talk to your mother like that. She's not your maid. Go upstairs and pick out another shirt like she told you to do."

"Lame!" Henry said again as he sat down at the table.

"MOM!" Roland shouted.

"Henry." Regina said sternly.

"What? He's being a brat!" Henry answered.

"I'm not a brat!" Roland shouted back at him and Regina watched his lip tremble a bit.

"That's enough from everyone!" Robin stood from the table "Henry eat your cereal, Roland upstairs, I will help you pick out a shirt."

"I want Mommy!" Roland told him.

"Well you're getting me." Robin answered back with exasperation. He picked up Roland and carried him out of the room.

Henry rolled his eyes as they exited. "I don't know why you let him throw tantrums like that." He stated. "You never let me."

Regina gave a humorless laugh that had Henry looking at her. "I seem to remember several tantrums when I wouldn't let you wear your Spiderman Halloween costume every day for a week straight."

Henry reddened a bit. "Well at least Spiderman is cool."

"Eat your breakfast." Regina answered and turned back to pour herself and Robin a cup of coffee.

Five minutes later Robin appeared back in the doorway with a pouting Roland standing beside him looking even more exasperated then he had when they'd left the room.

"Coffee?" Regina held out the mug to him with a small smile on her face.

"You're a saint of a woman." Robin said as he stepped over to her and took the offered mug. He groaned as the hot liquid made it's way down his throat. Hopefully this would clear his head a bit so he could at the very least deal with Roland's tantrum. "I could kiss you." He said softly to her with a small smile on his face remembering how he nearly had this morning before all hell had broken lose in their house.

"If only I had known a week ago that coffee is all it would take to get you to do that." She said with a grin even while she wondered what the hell she was saying.

Henry put his bowl in the sink. "Why don't you two just make out already and save us all anymore grief."

"Henry Daniel Mills." Regina said as he walked out of the room. She then turned back to roll her eyes at Robin. "I wish someone had warned me that my son would one day become the smart alec he is today. At least then I would have been prepared."

"I think he gets that amazing sass from you darling." Robin grinned at her.

Regina laughed and rolled her eyes. "Gods help us all then."

"I'm still mad!" Roland spoke up from the table obviously not happy with the fact that no one had been paying attention to his pouting.

Regina grinned slightly at Robin before turning to the little boy. "What are you mad about?"

Roland looked at her for a long moment. You could nearly see the wheels turning in his mind. "I don't remember." He crossed his little arms over his chest.

Regina chuckled. "Well then I guess it wasn't all that important was it?"

Robin grinned at the two of them as Regina walked over to pour his cereal into his bowl. After pouring the milk in she leaned over and placed a kiss to the boy's head before turning around to take the milk back to the fridge.

"I guess it says something that despite everything that is going on our boys still act like fairly typical children…we must be doing something right." Robin told her.

Regina chuckled. "It certainly didn't take them long to begin acting like brothers."

Robin lifted his hand to push her hair behind her ear. "I love seeing you smile."

"Guys! I'm gonna be late!" Henry said from the doorway.

"I'm not done eating!" Roland told him.

"Well hurry up!" Henry said back.

"Why don't you go ahead and drop Henry so you and he aren't late?" Robin said. "I can bring Roland to school once he's finished eating."

"Are you sure you don't mind?" Regina asked.

Robin shook his head. "I have some errands to run this morning anyway."

"I don't want you to take me to school!" Roland said grouchily "I want Mommy!"

Robin threw his head back and prayed for patience.

"I'll see you when you get home from school baby." Regina crouched down beside the chair.

"But you always take me to school." He poked out his lip a bit. "I'll miss you if you don't."

"I'll miss you too sweetheart." She brushed his hair back from his face. "How about instead of brining you home after school today you, Daddy and Henry can meet me at the office? We'll go for ice cream before Daddy goes into work."

"I'll get to see you right after school?" He asked.

"Yep." She placed a kiss to his head. "Right after."

"Ok." He said but still look wary. Roland was a creature of habit and didn't like having his normal routine interrupted.

"I love you." Regina smiled and ran her fingers through his hair a bit.

"I love you too Mommy." Roland told her.

Regina turned to glance at Robin. "I'll see you later."

Robin who had been smiling at Regina and Roland's conversation just nodded and watched as she turned to leave placing her arm around Henry as she did so.

Was it any wonder that he was completely in love with this woman?

XXXXXXXX

Regina pushed through the pile of paperwork on her desk. If she was going to take off early for some family time today she was going to need to get all of this finished.

The morning had started completely hectic. Regina hated running late. It always made her feel off for the rest of the day but for some reason that morning she hadn't been able to pull herself from Robin's arms. He just felt so good beside her. So right.

They had kissed that morning…barely a brush of lips before it had been interrupted but that slight touch had nearly lit her on fire. She missed him so much and the more time she spent with him, the more she missed.

She glanced at the phone when her assistant's voice came over the intercom. "Madam Mayor, there is someone here to see you. She says it's urgent."

Regina looked at the paperwork that littered her desk. It desperately needed her attention. She sighed. "Who is it?"

"She said her name is Glinda. She says it's about Snow White." Her assistant answered.

Regina's heart pounded a little harder. "Send her in."

She glanced up when the woman walked through the door. She'd seen her before…She was a teacher at the elementary school. She was a pretty blonde woman, somewhat petite. She looked every bit the school teacher. Perhaps she had worked with Snow at some point.

"How may I help you Glinda?" She asked, if the stories from Oz were any indication…this woman possibly knew the Wicked Witch. "My assistant said you had information on Snow."

Glinda shook her head. "Not specifically Snow…but I know why Elphaba wants her and I know what her goal is."

Regina stared at the woman for a moment. "Excuse me for asking, but if this is true why has it taken you so long to come forward? The curse has been broken for over a month."

Glinda nodded and looked down. "I…I was looking for something. Proof of my suspicions. I found it." She told her holding out a piece of paper that looked as if it had been torn from a book.

Regina took it from her and saw what looked to be a spell, but in a language she didn't know.

"What is this?" Regina wanted to know.

"It's a spell, a very powerful spell…it's the only known way to defeat the Wizard of Oz." She told her.

"And Elphaba wants to use this spell?" Regina asked.

"Yes." The blonde woman answered.

"Perhaps you better start from the beginning." Regina told her.

Glinda nodded. "Elphie and I have known each other a long time." She started. "We studied magic together. While we were in school there was some upheaval in our land. The Wizard had come into power and while many loved and adored him, many did not. The Wizard began to enact laws restricting the rights of Animals…Umm when I say Animals I mean ones who can speak and interact with humans." Glinda explained. "Anyway we had this professor that Elphie really took a liking too. His name was Doctor Dillamond. Long story short he was killed and Elphie set off on a quest to rebel against the Wizard. Years later her son was murdered, by the Wizard himself. He had attempted to have Elphie killed, but I managed to warn her." Glinda shook her head. "She was crazy with grief. She became obsessed with finding a way to kill him. That is what brought her to this."

"I assume that this is the reason she needs Snow's baby?" Regina asked her.

Glinda nodded. "The only person who can pull off the spell is one born of true love. Elphie plans to take the baby and raise him or her in the ways of magic so that one day she can defeat him."

"Why a baby though? Why not an adult who is born of true love…who could defeat the Wizard sooner?" Regina asked.

"No one would volunteer for that mission…at least no one we know. Even with the powers that this person would possess it would be very dangerous." Glinda told her.

"So she plans to raise this baby hating the Wizard as much as she does." Regina asked.

"Yes." Glinda told her. "I checked in on her from time to time after Liir was killed. She researched for several years about how to pull it off. In her research she found out other things…about herself and where she comes from."

"And where is that?" Regina asked.

"The Enchanted Forest." Glinda told her. "She was abandoned at birth and the more she learned about her life the more bitter she became. She began to blame everyone in her past for the way things had turned out…specifically her mother."

"And who was her mother?" Regina asked.

Glinda blinked and looked down at her shoes for a moment. "The same as yours."

"Excuse me?" Regina asked

"Cora was Elphie's mother Regina." Glinda told her. "She's your sister."

Regina felt as if the air had been taken from her lungs for a moment but suddenly it all began to make sense. "That's why she hates me."

"It's also why she hates Neal as well…Rumpelstiltskin was her father. She was born green…I'm not sure if that is why your mother gave her up but…"

"Of course it is." Regina interrupted "She could never move up in the world with a green child. She would have seen her as social ruin."

Glinda swallowed. "Elphie isn't evil Regina…she's heart broken, she's done terrible things to get to this point but…"

"You don't have to explain to me how people end up doing terrible things. I'm The Evil Queen remember?" Regina told her.

Glinda took a deep breath. "She removed her heart…before she came here she removed her heart. I think she knew that she wouldn't be able to go through with any of this with it."

Regina looked at the woman in front of her. "Do you know where she is?"

"I can't be certain, but once the baby is born she will need to get back to our land." Glinda told her. "I believe she's gone after the ruby slippers."

"And where are those?" Regina asked.

"A place called Kansas." Glinda told her. "She will be back though. She's convinced herself that this is the right thing to do. She believes that as long as the Wizard lives more innocent people will die…which she's likely right about."

Regina took a breath. "What about Snow? Do you know where she is?"

Glinda shook her head. "No, I do believe she's here, in Storybrook. Elphie doesn't plan to hurt her."

"Not physically…but she does plan to take her child." Regina answered.

"She believes it's the only way." Glinda answered.

"And the curse?" Regina asked.

"When she left Oz for the Enchanted Forest all portals were sealed, the only thing powerful enough to get back were the slippers."

"Which are in this land." Regina answered.

Glinda nodded. "And it didn't hurt to get a touch of revenge on everyone she felt she'd been wronged by while she was at it…but it wasn't her ultimate goal."

"Why are you just now brining me this information? You said you were waiting for proof…to find this" Regina held up the page. "But you knew all of this."

"I…I hoped you would find Snow without me. I justified not telling because I didn't know where she was…part of the reason Liir is dead…well it's partially my fault." Glinda said. "I had hoped I would be able to find Elphie on my own and talk her out of this."

Regina took a deep breath. As if this all wasn't enough to take in…she had a sister. A sister she would very likely end up having to fight.

"Hi Mommy!" Roland burst through the door not even giving her time to process.

Regina looked up at her son as Robin came rushing in behind him. "Roland I told you to wait till she was finished with her meeting."

"But Mommy said I could see her right after school!" Roland told him as he made his way around the desk and climbed into Regina's lap. "Hi!" He waved at the blond teacher who sat in front of Regina's desk. "You teach at my school!" he announced. "Ms. Linda!"

"Ms. Glinda darling." Regina corrected and noticed Robin raise an eyebrow at the name and look at her.

"I should be going." Glinda said

Regina nodded. "I may need to speak with you again." She told her.

"Of course." Glinda nodded goodbye to all of them and walked past Henry who was leaning against the door frame.

"Mommy!" Roland bounced in her lap. "Ready for ice cream?!"

Regina looked at her son's happy face and forced a smile. "You bet I am."

Roland jumped up and made his way to the door. When Regina stood to follow Robin took her arm lightly. "You're upset."

Regina nodded in agreement. "Not here. We need to call a meeting with the Charming's…we should probably call Neal too…" he certainly needed to know about all of this as well. "Can you call John and see if he can take the boys for a few hours so we can meet up?"

Robin nodded and brought his hand up to stroke her hair. "Hey, whatever it is…we'll get through it, together."

Regina smiled and nodded. She only hoped they could.

XXXXXXXX

"I have a sister?" Neal repeated for the second time.

"She wants to raise my child as some kind of a trained assassin?" Charming asked.

"You have a sister?" Robin said to Regina.

"It's a lot to take in." Regina agreed. "I haven't processed it all myself."

"Where does the curse fit in?" Emma wanted to know.

"She needed to get back to this land to get the slippers." Regina explained. "All portals were sealed when she left Oz and the only thing powerful enough to get back are the slippers."

"And cursing us?" Neal asked.

"Just a side benefit to pay back all those she felt had wronged her." Regina answered.

"And she had no idea where Snow is?" Charming asked.

Regina shook her head. "No."

"Could she be lying?" Emma asked.

Regina shook her head. "I suppose she could, but I don't know why she would come to me with all of this and lie about that."

"So what now?" Charming asked.

Regina shook her head. "I suppose we try to come up with a plan…and keep trying to bring back magic so I can locate Snow."

"Still no luck? Not even with the true love potion?" Emma asked.

Regina shook her head. "Unfortunately I think in this case it does have to be romantic true love and we don't have anyone in Storybrook that it has worked with. Phillip and Aurora weren't brought over with the curse and…well we don't know where Snow is."

"We have to find her Regina." Charming said with a hint of desperation in his voice.

"We will." She promised. "In any case I think we can rest easy that she isn't being hurt…and is probably being taken care of."

"Rest easy? She wants to kidnap my child!" Charming said.

Regina nodded calmly "Who won't be born for at least another two months…time was frozen here when we were cursed. Snow was six months pregnant in the Enchanted Forest and a month has passed since the curse broke. We have time to find her before the baby is born."

Charming huffed out a breath "We have to find her." He repeated.

"We will." She promised.

XXXXXXXX

Regina sat up in bed just as she had every night of the past week waiting for Robin to come home. She took a small breath of relief when she heard the downstairs door shut. She waited as she heard him climb the stairs and smiled when he knocked lightly on the door. She desperately needed to see him. She needed to feel his arms around her.

He poked his head in when she told him to come in and smiled back at her. "Hey."

"Hi."

"I'm just gonna get changed for bed." He told her and gestured to the bathroom. Regina nodded and kept her back against the headboard. When he came back out a few minutes later in his pajama pants he slipped under the covers and sat back against the headboard as well. "You ok?" He asked.

Regina shook her head. "No I'm not." She took a deep breath and allowed him to take her hand when he shifted a bit closer to her. "I have a sister Robin…a sister that I very likely may have to fight magically."

Robin rubbed his thumb over the back of her hand.

"I've killed everyone I'm related to…my mother…my father…and now I may have to…" She shook her head. "I can't think about it."

"There has to be another way." Robin stated.

Regina nodded. "I was thinking about that." She told him. "She had to take out her heart…Glinda said she didn't think she could go through with her plan with it, so maybe…" she shifted so she could look at him. "What if I found her heart and put it back in, I could use the same enchantment I used on Henry so she couldn't remove it again."

"Do you think it would stop her?"

"I have to try don't I? I don't want to lose a family member I didn't even know I had…I" She smiled and shook her head. "I always wished I had a sister…someone to share my secrets with, and now I find out I do…that I could have had one all this time. Maybe with her heart back in I can talk to her…maybe she will listen to me."

"Then that is what we will do." Robin told her. "We find her heart."

Regina swallowed. "Do you believe it will work?"

"I believe in you." He answered.

Regina took a deep breath at his answer. No one had ever said those words to her before. "Why?" She asked as she looked deep into his eyes.

"Because you can do anything Regina." He told her.

Regina felt the tears begin to well in her eyes and blinked them away. She raised her hand to his face and leaned into him slowly. She lightly brushed his mouth with hers. She pulled back a bit to find him watching her. He made no move towards her but smiled slightly letting her know that he was letting her take the lead here.

She leaned back into him and pressed her lips a bit more firmly to his. She allowed her hand to move into his hair as she lightly ran her tongue along his lower lip. When he parted his lips for her she deepened the kiss slowly allowing her tongue to gently explore his mouth. She felt his hand come up behind her head and she smiled a little as she allowed her tongue to tangle with his. She pulled back a bit breathless and stared into his eyes.

He stroked her hair gently and leaned in to place another feather light kiss to her lips. "We should get some sleep." He told her.

Regina nodded as he shifted himself down on the bed to lay on his back. He held his arms up for her and Regina settled herself against his chest. She felt overwhelmed with emotion and for the first time in her life knew that whatever decision she made here she wouldn't be alone. He would have her back.

He believed in her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please Review! It's my crack as you all know!
> 
> Also I know that that my version of Elphie's story may be a bit confusing as I pulled some from the book a little from the musical…and then basically made up a lot of my own stuff so if there is confusion feel free to ask.
> 
> Stop by and say hello on tumbr! I'm thequeenstolemyheart there as well. I'm always looking for people to fan girl with and I really haven't yet gotten over the perfection that was Sunday's episode. OQ is so perfect! You can also find me on twitter mrsddixon


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I need to apologize and throw myself on all of your mercy for the long delay with this chapter. My husband and I have made the decision to become foster parents and things have been crazy. We've been going to classes, doing paperwork and getting ready for the home study so it has left little free time for writing.
> 
> The chapter starts off with some pretty detailed smut (don't say I didn't warn you!)

Regina woke to the feel of a hand lightly stroking her back. It was a good feeling. She knew if she were to open her eyes she would find Robin watching her. He'd always told her when they were living their cursed lives that he loved to watch her sleep. It had never failed to make her feel loved and cherished. The fact that he still enjoyed it even now gave her butterflies.

Could this really work? Could he really get past her being The Evil Queen? Or was this just remnants of living a cursed life with her? Would he one day wake up and realize who she really was and run as fast as he could in the other direction?

The thing with Robin though was that he'd never made her feel like that woman who had once been so cruel and evil. He always had looked at her as just Regina. For so very long she'd wanted someone who just saw her as Regina.

He'd known who she was in the Enchanted Forest, but had been friendly with her anyway. He'd even trusted her with attempting to insure his son could be with him in the curse. He'd been her friend. Well the closest thing she would allow as a friend when she had been there.

Their situation now was complicated. Regina had a hard time working out just what feelings were real and what feelings were remnants of a cursed life. One where each had been incredibly happy. How could she be sure that the feelings he felt for her now were just a desperate longing to get back to that happiness? Could it simply be a desperate attempt at holding on to happiness that wasn't even real?

She supposed if her own feelings were any indicator that what he felt for her could be real. Her feelings were certainly real. She fell more in love with him everyday, a fact that frankly scared the shit out of her.

There was also the tattoo. It sat on his arm as a reminder of a life she'd once rejected. She'd been to afraid to let go of her anger and hatred, for without those things what would she have? How could she have guaranteed that she would receive a reward for letting those things go?

She knows now she would have. It would have been an amazing reward. She would have had him. She would have had someone who would love her and look at her as if she were the only person that would have mattered. They could have had children and a quiet life in some corner of another world, far away from castles and kings. Far from the Dark One and his manipulations. They could have had a home.

Not that she could regret it fully for if she had gone to him that night Henry and Roland wouldn't be here and she would trade nothing for them. Not even a life of happiness.

Could the fact that they were fated for each other be the reason he was drawn to her? She couldn't help but hope that was the case, but she also feared that it wasn't. One thing Regina had learned in her life was that things rarely stayed good for her for long. But maybe this time…

Robin watched Regina as she slept. Gods she was the most beautiful sight he'd ever laid eyes on. He loved everything about her and he missed her so very much.

He relished in the fact that he could hold her through the night now, but he missed pulling her into his arms. He missed kissing her. He missed making love to her.

She'd kissed him last night. The thought of their shared kiss brought a smile to his lips. She kissed him. It hadn't been he who initiated, but her. He felt his heart leap in hope. Maybe she would allow him in.

He knew the moment she woke up. He also knew that she was purposely keeping her eyes closed. He'd teased her in their cursed life that Regina was a loud thinker. He always claimed that he could nearly hear her thoughts and it was no less true now. He could see she was deeply debating something in her mind. Probably trying to decide if what they were sharing here was real. He knew the answer to that question, but she still had her doubts. He wanted her to believe in them, but he also understood that would have to be a decision she comes to completely on her own. He could encourage her and continue to show her just how much he cared for her, but until she believed it she would never fully be his.

He so desperately wanted her to be his.

So he continued to stroke her back attempting to let her know that he was here, that she was safe and she would never have to be alone again. Not if she didn't want to. He ran his hand up and down her back in soothing strokes hoping that she knew he would always be here. He wanted her to believe in him. He wanted her to believe in what they had and that no matter how it may have started it was real now.

He watched as her features relaxed a bit hopefully letting go of some of the worry she had been feeling. He leaned forward and pressed a kiss to her brow then to her cheek. He looked back to find a small smile on her face and couldn't help but lean in and place a light kiss to her lips.

She didn't open her eyes but parted her lips at the contact inviting him to deepen the kiss. He ran his tongue along her bottom lip before slipping into her mouth and taking. He attempted to put every emotion, every feeling he felt for her into it. He wanted her to know, wanted to show her how much she meant to him.

When he pulled back breathless she finally opened her eyes and looked into his. He gave her a crooked smile.

"Good morning." He greeted.

She smiled back at him. "Good morning."

He lifted his hand to her hair and began to play with it a bit as he continued to look at her. "Has anyone ever told you that you are absolutely stunning in the morning?"

She smiled back at him and leaned in to place her lips back to his. "Only you."

"I am a brilliant man." He told her. "I never miss out on things of extreme beauty." He leaned back in a brushed his lips over hers. He feathered his tongue over her bottom lip once again then took it lightly between his teeth.

Regina grinned when he pulled back. "You're also full of shit."

Robin pulled back looking offended but she could see the slight upturn of his mouth. "Are you saying I don't know beauty when it's staring me straight in the face?"

Regina shook her head. "I'm saying that fancy words mean nothing." She ran a hand down his chest making him shiver a bit with anticipation. "It's actions that really matter."

"You want action?" He asked and ghosted his hand up her side. She'd worn a night gown last night instead of pajamas. It was a flimsy thing with lace on the top. It had been so long since he'd seen her like this. So long since he'd been able to touch her this way, but here she was allowing him to kiss her, to run his hands along her body.

"A little action wouldn't hurt." She said.

He looked deep into her eyes searching. No she wasn't sure yet. She wasn't convinced fully of his feelings for her, but she was trying. He could see she was trying so hard to believe.

He leaned back in and placed another searing kiss to her lips. She moaned a bit in the back of her throat. As he allowed his hand to roam up her body. Oh how much he'd missed touching her body. He shifted her so that she was on her back and he moved his hand over her stomach. Regina shuddered from the light touches and pulled him back in for another kiss urging him to do more to go farther. He moved his hand over the thin silk to cup her breast and he felt the hard nipple beneath as it strained against the fabric. Regina arched her back into his hand moaning in a plea for him to continue. He moved his hand to the other breast and pinched her nipple lightly before running his thumb over it soothing.

"Robin." She breathed out.

Hearing his name from her lips caused a surge of heat to shoot straight to his groin. His arousal growing and begging for more. He leaned in and began to trail kisses down her neck and over her collar bone. His body felt as if it were on fire as he trailed his tongue over the top of the lace just above her breast.

"I've missed being with you like this Regina." He told her as he tugged on the fabric of her night gown to expose her breasts to him. He moaned at the sight of her and lowered his head to take one of her nipples into his mouth. When she arched her back and let out a deep groan in the back of her throat Robin felt his pulse quicken even more.

There was nothing quite like the sounds Regina made when she was being pleasured.

Growing impatient with the night gown he quickly pulled it up and over her head exposing her torso to him. He brought his lips back down to hers when she lifted her hands to run them along his chest. Her small soft hands, how he'd missed her hands on him.

He once again made his way down her body with his mouth, stopping at each breast and driving her wild with his ministrations. He made his way down her stomach stopping at the line of her panties and trailing his tongue along the silk and lace. Regina arched her hips off the bed and he took advantage of her position and pulled the panties off and down her legs. He lingered at her feet for a moment before trailing kisses all the way back up her legs. She panted when he reached the inside of her thighs and threw her head back waiting for him to touch her where she most wanted to be touched.

"Robin, please." She breathed out.

Hearing his name come from her lips and the plea for more nearly drove him over the edge. He positioned himself between her legs and lifted her hips. She let out a long moan when he ran his tongue up the length of her before plunging into her. Gods he'd missed the taste of her. Nothing could quite compare to being with this woman, the woman he loved more then anything in this world. In this moment he simply wanted to spend the rest of his life bringing her pleasure.

He shifted his position and brought his hand between her legs. He entered her with his fingers and moved his mouth over her clit. She let out a strangled cry when he traced his tongue lightly over the bundle of nerves. He could feel her legs beginning to tense and he knew she was close. He grinned as she bucked beneath his mouth and he increased the pace of his fingers. Regina shot off the bed when he lightly sucked her clit and she came undone around him. Even as he felt her tense around his fingers she poured into his hand. Robin lapped at her like a man starving and continued his movements until she'd ridden out the orgasm.

He kissed his way back up her body pleased to feel the pounding of her heart beneath his lips as he made his way over her chest. She had yet to catch her breath and fuck she looked beautiful like this, pleasured and ready for more. He loved how open she was when they were together like this. He loved that in this moment there was no walls between them. It was him and her and she allowed him to see every part of her. He wanted this all the time. He wanted her to be his, all the way his. He didn't want her to hold herself back, but he wanted to see all of her.

He brought his lips back down to hers and kissed her deeply.

Regina moaned as she tasted herself on him. How was it possible that he could do this to her. In the space of a few minutes he had managed to bring every protective wall she kept around herself crashing down. He had a talent for knocking down her walls and every time she thought she had built them back up again he would give her a look, or touch her in a way that made her want to give everything to him. He made her want to give her whole self.

"Was that enough action for you darling?" He whispered into her ear.

She could hear the smirk in his voice and thought to come back with a quick remark, but considering coherent thought had yet to return to her mind she simply pulled him down for another deep kiss. Her heart began to race all over again. She wanted him. She wanted this man. She wanted to share every part of herself and she couldn't recall ever feeling that way towards another person before. She wanted to hear him moan her name in ecstasy just as he'd done to her. She wanted to make him whimper and lose all sense of himself.

She pulled back from the kiss with a grin and quickly shoved him onto his back. She straddled him taking control. She leaned in for another deep kiss as she ran her hands along his chiseled chest. It was no secret she'd always enjoyed his physique. Even in the time they been friends in the Enchanted Forest Regina had often found herself admiring him. He was a beautiful man. Perfect in every way.

And he was hers. She may have trouble believing anything between them would last, but right now in this moment he was all hers.

She began trailing her lips down his chest and grinned against his skin when she heard him groan. She kissed her way down his stomach and looked up at him as she teased her fingers along the waist of his pajama pants. She could clearly see his erection fighting against the fabric of his pants and she desperately wanted to see him. She wanted to take her time admiring his body and bringing him the same pleasure he'd brought to her. She hooked her fingers in the waist band of his pants and slowly pulled them down his legs.

Robin watched her as she'd moved down his body. In their cursed lives she had rarely been the one to take control of their love making. It had usually been him. He was enjoying this side of her. He reveled in the fact that she enjoyed his body. His breath caught when she began to tug on his pants. His heart felt like a jack hammer against his ribs. He wanted her so badly he ached.

Regina smiled hungrily at him as she pulled his pants off his legs and his erection was finally freed. She was quite sure he was the sexiest man she'd ever seen. She felt wetness pool between her legs at the site of him.

She began to trail her hands up his legs and she could see his breathing increase the closer she came to where he wanted her. He took in a sharp breath when she trailed her fingers over his bulging member and she thrilled at the fact that she could do this to him. She took him fully into her hand and began to pump.

"Regina." He breathed out on a moan and she grinned up at him.

She lowered her head and ran her tongue over his tip causing him to whimper and when she pulled his tip into her mouth the strangled sound that came from him caused her heart to pick up it's pace and the ache between her legs to throb. She wanted him inside her, but she didn't want to give up this moment of driving him crazy just yet. She wanted him incoherent the way he had made her. She wanted him to lose all sense of rational thought. She wanted to drive him mad with pleasure.

She felt his hand come down to lightly grip her hair but it wasn't forceful. He held on to her, but allowed her to keep all the control and it thrilled her.

The pounding didn't register for several moments. It wasn't until she heard rushing up the stairs and her name being called she finally recognized something else besides the glorious groans she was pulling from the man under her.

"Regina!" she heard from the other side of her bedroom door and moved just fast enough to pull the blankets over her and Robin before the door burst open revealing Emma.

Her eyes widened comically as she took in the sight before her and the completely annoyed glances being shot her way from the two people on the bed.

"Ms. Swan, How in the hell did you get in my house?!" Regina somehow managed to be intimidating even naked in bed with only a sheet covering her.

"I…" Emma looked from Regina to Robin then averted her eyes to the floor. "Henry let me in…I've been pounding on the door for the last ten minutes."

"And did it not occur to you that the reason I wasn't answering was because I was otherwise occupied?" Regina asked and if looks could kill Emma would be six feet under.

"I…Um…it was kind of an emergency and I…I didn't realize that you and Robin…I didn't think you were…I didn't know the two of you were together." Emma finished awkwardly.

"Oh, so it's perfectly ok to burst into someone's bedroom when they are alone then?" Regina asked.

"I…" Emma looked back up at Regina with a look of apology. "I'm sorry…it was an emergency."

"What?!" Regina growled obviously ready to be finished with this conversation.

"David's missing." Emma told her. Robin sat up a bit at the news and Emma allowed her gaze to fall over the man for a moment. Her eyes snapped back to the brunette when she heard Regina growl. "He left a note at the station that he was checking out a lead about Snow…He didn't come home last night."

Regina let out a huff of breath. "Go downstairs to the kitchen." Regina snapped. "I will be down in a minute."

Emma nodded and allowed her gaze to land on Robin once more and she smiled a little sheepishly. "Sorry." she said again.

"Get out!" Regina snapped and Emma turned and shut the door lightly behind her.

When the door closed Robin huffed out a frustrated breath and fell back to the bed. He felt as if he'd been waiting a lifetime for this moment, and here he was naked and in bed with the love of his life and someone barges in. She had been in the midst of pleasuring him as he'd never been pleasured before and now it was over.

"I'm sorry." Regina said as she looked him over. Now that the sheet was spread flat over him she could see his erection throbbing against it. She brought her hand up to touch his chest.

"It's not your fault." He told her. "Although I do see what you mean now about Emma being really annoying."

Regina nodded. "I told you…and she also has the worst timing on the planet."

"Indeed." Robin agreed.

She looked back down at him and slid her hand from his chest to his stomach attempting to move under the covers. "I could…"

He took her hand and pulled it to his lips. "Considering she's downstairs waiting and the fact that she also woke up Henry I think it will be rather hard for either of us to concentrate now." He placed a kiss to her knuckles. "I'm alright. Go on down." He told her.

She felt like an ass leaving him hanging like this, but he was right of course. Now that Henry was awake it was only a matter of time before Roland would be as well.

"Maybe we will have some alone time later." she told him.

He grinned and sat up to kiss her. "I look forward to it."

XXXXXXXX

After spending nearly two hours combing through the station attempting to find this lead that David had followed the night before they'd finally given up and decided to make their way to Regina's vault. If there was any form of magic here in Storybrook surely it would be here.

They both watched as Robin moved the casket that gained access to the vault. Regina leaned into Emma with a smirk.

"I understand Ms Swan that the view is quite pleasing to the eye, but if I see you glance at Robin's ass one more time I will rip your eyes from your head." Regina told her.

Emma looked at Regina with a slight upturn to her lips. "Sorry, but after the view of his chest this morning…I mean who would have guessed that was under those shirts of his." She looked over to see Regina scowling. "I mean he is hot Regina…like seriously."

"I know dear" Regina answered her. "And he's mine, so I would appreciate you keeping your eyes on one of your many suitors."

"Please as if I would have a chance anyway." Emma answered. "That man looks at you like the sun and moon rise in your eyes. He's crazy about you Regina. I think that's pretty obvious."

Regina's heart leaped at the statement. "Let's focus on finding your father, or has Robin's incredible ass caused to you to forget that he's gone missing?"

"I haven't forgotten Regina." Emma said dryly. "I'm just trying to pretend like things are normal and our lives aren't in imminent danger for a few minutes."

Regina gave her a look of sympathy as she descended into the vault. She hadn't been back here since the new curse had been cast. The memories that flooded her as she entered certainly weren't welcome.

It was easy to forget who she had once been when she was laying in Robin's arms or playing with Henry and Roland. It was easy to pretend that she had never done the horrible things she had done when she didn't have things like this vault to remind her. She moved past the hearts and heard the constant beating. The beating of the hearts of so many she'd lost count. The hearts of people she no longer remembered. She couldn't remember all the faces of the people she had taken them from. She couldn't remember the reasons she had stolen them. The sound of those hearts mocked her now. They reminded her of the person she was. The person she would never get away from and no amount of pretending would make those hearts go away. They were a part of her now, they were part of who she was and who she would always be.

They searched through the vault looking for anything that may hold enough magic for Regina to work a tracking spell. All the while they looked the pounding in Regina's head became louder and more prominent. Her breathing began to quicken as she tried desperately to block out the sound but it continued.

"Regina." she felt a hand on her arm and looked up to see Robin looking back at her. "Are you ok?" He asked.

She swallowed as she looked at this man. He looks at you as if the sun and moon rise in your eyes. Emma had said to her. She didn't deserve him. She didn't deserve to be looked at that way. Not when she'd taken love from so many. Not when she'd destroyed peoples lives and ripped apart families. She didn't deserve to be looked at the way Robin looked at her. Not only did she not deserve it but as she looked at him…really looked into his eyes she saw the goodness there, the kindness. He would wake up one day. One day he would realize who she was and he would leave. He would take Roland with him. She didn't deserve him either or Henry. She'd destroyed to many people to have so much love and she knew…she knew that one day she would lose it all. What would it be that came back from her past that caused all of the ones she loved most to turn their backs on her? Something would. There was to much she had done that was unforgivable.

Thump thump…thump thump…

Her head was spinning. She felt sick. Had she really thought just this morning that she could be happy? Had she truly believed she could move past all of this?

Thump thump…thump thump…

She swallowed hard as she looked into his concerned eyes…concern she didn't deserve. Love she didn't deserve.

Thump thump…thump thump

She pulled her arm from his grip and raced up the stairs of the vault. She burst from the crypt and gasped as she felt the cool night air caress her face. She took two deep breaths before doubling over and emptying the contents of her stomach.

"Regina?" Robin stepped up behind her placing a hand lightly on her back as she heaved. He ran his hand gently up and down her back trying to soothe her. She stood up straight after several moments and swallowed hard. "I think you've had enough for today…why don't I take you home?"

"No." She answered. "We need to keep looking." She answered him.

"Regina, if you're not feeling well…"

"I'm fine." She said flatly and stepped back from his touch. "We need to keep looking." If she could find Snow and Charming…perhaps this one thing could right at least one of the many wrongs she had committed.

Robin dropped his hand to his side when she stepped away from him and watched as she turned and made her way back down the stairs to her vault.

Regina walked back into her vault and hastily wiped the tear that fell from her eyes. She wanted to cover her ears and run screaming from this place. She wanted to go back to the cocoon she'd made for herself with her boys…where she was someone else…someone who could never have committed the crimes she had. She wanted to forget, but she walked back into the vault, back into the unending thumping…back into the sound of the many lives she'd ruined.

Thump thump…thump thump…

XXXXXXXX

Regina laid in bed after what had seemed to be an unending day. It had been truly torturous and they were no closer to finding David or Snow now then they had been this morning. The thumping still haunted her…it was there now as a constant reminder.

How had she deluded herself into believing that she could actually be happy?

Elphaba it seemed had truly known what she was doing when she'd cursed Regina to a happy life…a normal life. She'd given Regina a taste of what it was like to live a life that she would never have. Her cursed self hadn't been a murderer. She hadn't been cruel or committed terrible crimes. She'd been a woman…a woman with a husband and son who loved her. She'd been normal…blessedly and perfectly normal. She wondered how many people took being normal for granted? This was a life she was never supposed to have and having a small taste of it just hurt all the more.

A tear fell as she heard the door open behind her. She remained on her side facing away from him as he slipped into the bed. She wanted to rip her own heart out when she felt the soft kiss placed to her head and the warm safe arms wrap around her.

"Feeling better?" He asked reaching around her and taking her hand in his.

"Not really." She said honestly.

He tugged on her and she rolled onto her back. He looked down into her face and gently brushed the hair away from her forehead. He leaned in and placed a gentle kiss to her head and continued to stroke her hair gently.

"Do you feel like a migraine is coming on?" He asked "I could get your medicine for you."

She looked into his eyes. His kind eyes and longed for something she knew would never be hers. She closed her eyes and wanted to cry as she felt his gentle touch.

"I don't need my medicine" She breathed out and opened her eyes to look at him. "I think you should move back to the guest room."

Robin blinked at her even as he felt his heart drop. "Oh…well if your not feeling well and would rather be alone…"

Regina shook her head and wanted to cry at the hurt she saw on his face. Better to hurt him now then later. "I think you should move back there for good Robin."

Robin drew his hand back from her and studied her for a moment. "Regina what's going on? This morning you were ready to make love with me and now all of a sudden…what happened in that vault today?"

"What needed to happen Robin. I was reminded of who I was and who I will always be." She told him.

"Who you are is Henry and Roland's mother…You're Regina…my wife." he told her.

"I'm not your wife." she turned her head away from him because she couldn't bare to look at the hurt in his eyes.

He took her chin in his hand and pulled her face back to look at him. "You are in all the ways that matter…in my heart…and given the chance I would marry you again."

"Then you're a fool." Regina told him. "Do you have any idea who you are in bed with right now? How many lives I have destroyed? It is only a matter of time Robin before you find out something from my past that you can't handle. It's only a matter of time before you walk out that door and never look back."

"You obviously think very little of me if you think my love for you can be changed that easily." He told her.

"You don't…"

"Don't tell me I don't love you!" He raised his voice. "Because I love you so much it's sometimes hard for me to breathe when I look at you!" He moved to sit up. "If you want to throw away everything we have together then you certainly have every right to do so, but don't you dare tell me how I feel about you!"

Her breath hitched at the intensity in his eyes and she sat up with him. "Robin you don't understand who I am. What I've done."

"I think you're the one who doesn't understand who you are Regina." he told her sadly as he stood up. "You see all the bad things about yourself, but refuse to see the good. You only see your past but you completely ignore who you are now. You completely ignore everything we have together...everything we could have for the future." He started to leave the room but turned back. "When you got your memories back…before the curse was broken, that night when we were in the living room, you were going to make love with me before Roland woke up."

Regina looked at him but said nothing.

"Why?" He asked. "Don't tell me you were trying to keep me from figuring out something was wrong because I felt the desperation coming from you. You wanted to be with me that night…Why?"

"I…" Regina trailed off and looked down.

"I want the truth…was it because you had feelings for me?" He asked.

"Of course I had…have feelings for you Robin…"

"And?" he asked.

She swallowed. "I wanted to know what it felt like." She told him.

"What it felt like?" He questioned.

Regina nodded. "I wanted to know what it felt like to be with someone who loved me…to be touched that way…"

"The way I touched you this morning?" He asked and Regina looked up at him with pain filled eyes. He walked back to her and placed a light kiss to her head. "The next time you want to be touched, held, kissed, hugged…whatever by someone who loves you, you know where I will be. I'm not going any where Regina, my love isn't going to change."

"I don't deserve you." She said with tears in her eyes. "You should find someone else…someone who does."

"There is no one else." He stated then walked from the room.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please Review…it's my crack as you know!
> 
> I hope you all enjoyed and look forward to hearing from you. Again sorry for the delay, but hopefully now that we are two weeks from the home study things should be coming a bit more frequently. We almost have the house ready!


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tried to get it out last week, but it just didn't happen.

Robin let out a breath as she ran her hands over his stomach as those soft hands trailed ever lower. He couldn't get enough of her. The feel of her hands as she touched him, her lips on his. He never wanted this feeling to stop. He wanted to stay with her like this forever.

She pulled his ear between her teeth even as she ran her hand over his length. He let out a loud moan at the sensation and turned his head to capture her lips with his. He kissed her deeply and arched into her hand as she continued to stroke him.

When she pulled back from the kiss she leaned in and whispered softly into his ear. "I love you Robin."

Robin's heart began to pound hearing the words. He'd waited so long to hear them come from her mouth, wanted it so desperately.

"Regina." He breathed out and flipped their position so she was under him. "I love you so much." He kissed her again and she ran her hands along his back. He trailed his lips along her collar bone and looked back up at her. "So much."

She pulled his face back up to hers and kissed him again gently. "I can't stay." She whispered to him.

He looked at her with confusion as he watched tear fall from her eye. "You can stay Regina." He lifted his hand and wiped the tear from her face. "You can stay with me…" he leaned back in and placed a soft kiss to her cheek. "Please stay with me."

Regina shook her head and more tears fell. "I can't." She told him

"Regina." He began but then felt an overwhelming panic as she began to fade from sight. "Regina!" But in an instant she was gone. He sat up quickly and looked around the room.

He was suddenly running through a long dark hallway. He could hear her…she was calling out for him.

"Regina!" He stopped and tried to gauge where her voice was coming from.

"Robin!" Her voice was fear filled.

"Regina I'm coming, I will find you." He ran through the hallway opening every door he came to but only finding empty rooms.

A deafening scream could be heard from the end of the hallway and Robin's heart nearly stopped with the panic he felt.

"Regina!" He shot up in bed covered in sweat.

"Robin." She had a hand laid on his arm and he looked up at her from the bed. She'd heard the sounds coming from his room and then the frantic calling for her.

"Regina?" he blinked at her still caught between the dream and reality. He swallowed hard and tugged on the hand that was still laid on his arm. "Regina." he breathed out as he pulled her to him in a bone crushing hug.

Regina stumbled onto the bed before being pulled into his lap and pulled against him. She was at a loss for words. After the conversation the night before she wasn't sure how to react to what was happening. She could feel the frantic beat of his heart as he held her against him. His breathing was erratic and she could hear traces of fear in his voice. "You're here." He breathed and pulled back slightly to raise a hand to her face. "You're ok?"

"Of course I'm ok, Rob…" but that was all she got out before he crushed his lips to hers. This kiss didn't last long before he was pulling her back against him again. "Don't leave."

"Robin." He trembled slightly as he held her against him and she couldn't help but bring her hand up to soothe. She ran her hand through his hair and allowed him to hold on to her. The conversation from the night before played in her mind. She knew she shouldn't be allowing this contact right now…she knew it would confuse things for the both of them. Already she was relaxing into his hold, already she wanted to stay there, but she couldn't break it. Not when he was upset, not when he was holding onto her as if his life depended on it. She couldn't let him go. "Shh…" She soothed rubbing her hand over his hair. "I'm here. It's ok, it was only a dream."

Robin pulled his arms even tighter around her if that was possible. It hadn't felt like a dream. He'd felt terror like he'd never felt before at the thought that someone may be hurting her. He'd felt paralyzing fear at the thought of not being able to find her. "I love you Regina." He breathed against her. He looked back up at her and Regina felt tears burn in her eyes at the intensity of it.

He pulled her face back to his and kissed her again. "I love you." He said it again when he pulled back.

"Robin…I can't." She stopped and shook her head. She wanted to. She wanted to answer him back, tell him she loved him too. She wanted to allow him to hold her forever. "I don't deserve you." She said to him.

He wanted to shout at this stubborn woman. He wanted to tell her she deserved so much more then she gave herself credit for, but he knew she wouldn't accept that. He knew it would only push her away from him. "Deserve or not, you have me Regina."

She shook her head as she looked at him. "Why?"

He looked at her, really looked at her. He could see the uncertainty, the fear. He could see how hard it was for her to give herself. How hard it was for her to trust. "Why do the stars come out at night Regina? Why does the sun shine? There is no why…I love you, I need you."

Regina swallowed and brought her hand to his face. He was being honest with her. She could feel it in every pore of her body. He wasn't lying when he said he needed her. He was telling her the absolute truth. "What did you dream?" She changed the subject. She couldn't look at that intense gaze any longer.

He shook his head. "You were gone, you were calling for me, you needed me but I couldn't find you." He rested his forehead against hers. "I've never been so terrified."

"It was only a dream Robin." she told him.

He pulled back and shook his head. "You needed me and I couldn't find you."

"I'm right here." She assured him. "I'm safe."

He pulled her back to him and she let him. She let him hold on to her. No one had ever looked at her with the intensity that he had. No one had ever used the word "need" when it came to her. She couldn't pull away from it. As much as it scared her, as much as she knew she didn't deserve it she couldn't pull away from him.

"Daddy?" They heard Roland's voice from the bedroom door. Robin shook himself and did his best to regain his composure.

"Hey buddy." Robin finally got out as Roland watched them.

"What's wrong?" The boy wanted to know.

Robin felt his breath catch and was relieved when Regina answered for him. "Daddy just had a bad dream sweetheart."

Roland made his way over to the bed and laid a hand on his arm. "Did Mommy make it all better?" He wanted to know.

Robin shook his head and cleared his throat. Regina's screams were still echoing in his head. "Yeah buddy, Mommy made it all better."

Roland smiled. "She makes it better when the monsters come in my dreams too."

Regina smiled down at him. "Mommies are good at that." She felt Robin's arms tighten around her waist again and ran a hand over his hair.

"Daddy why are you in here?" The little boy wanted to know.

This time Regina was the one at a loss for words and Robin shook his head. "Mommy wasn't feeling well last night so I slept in here. I didn't want to disturb her." He lied.

Roland nodded as if that answer was good enough for him. "Mommy I'm hungry." he told her.

She smiled at him and ran a hand through his unruly hair. "Go on downstairs sweetheart, I will be right down."

Roland nodded and skipped out of the room. Regina ran her hand through Robin's hair again and placed a soft kiss to his forehead. "I need to go fix his breakfast." She pulled back from him. "Are you ok?"

He nodded. "Yeah…it was only a dream right?"

She smiled at him. "Right."

She moved to stand but he held her in place. "We need to talk Regina." He was not willing to let her go, not without fighting for her.

"I know" she said softly. She leaned in and placed another kiss to his head. "Tonight."

"I will see if Little John can keep Roland." He told her.

She nodded and stood to leave the room.

XXXXXXXX

Regina cleaned up the kitchen after Robin took Roland to school. She hadn't slept last night. She hadn't been able to get the hurt look on Robin's face out of her mind since the night before. She tossed and turned and had been unable to find sleep without his arms around her. She'd grown accustomed to him being there in the past month and not having him there had felt so empty. It had taken everything she'd had not to go to him.

She'd convinced herself this was best for all. She'd convinced herself that he was better off without her. He would leave anyway, she'd reasoned. One day he would have all he could take and he would walk out the door and never look back. She wanted to spare herself and him that pain. She wanted to keep him at arms length so she would never have to worry about hurting him.

When she'd finally rolled out of bed frustrated with herself she'd still convinced herself this was the right thing to do. She needed to let him go, allow him to find someone else. Someone he deserved…because he didn't deserve what being with her would bring to him. He didn't deserve the pain of loving her.

She'd showered and dressed, never allowing herself to feel her heart breaking. She'd put her make up on that morning, attempting to hide the circles under her eyes. She very carefully attempted to put on her mask, her shield that she'd worn for so long.

Then she'd heard him calling for her. She'd nearly convinced herself to ignore it, but the pain she'd heard as it went on…she had to go to him. When she pushed open the door he was thrashing around in the bed, covered in sweat and the fear she'd heard in his voice when he'd called her name had caused her breath to catch. She'd gently laid a hand on his arm and had said his name several times before he'd finally woken.

She hadn't expected to be pulled into his arms. She hadn't expected him to kiss her as if he'd thought he would never see her again. But he had. The intensity with which he'd looked at her made her rethink every decision she'd made the night before. It had been desperate, fearful and when he'd told her he loved her…that he needed her for the first time she'd believed him.

She hadn't been able to get it out of her mind. She couldn't forget the way he'd looked at her. She'd never imagined she would be on the other end of a look like that. Like he would die if he lost her. Like he wouldn't be able to go on. The fear in his eyes at even the idea he would lose her had slammed into her and she was no longer sure of anything.

But she believed him now…he loved her and no matter what else happened she knew that he always would.

She thought back to his tattoo. To what Tinkerbell had told her that day about him being her soul mate. Her true love. Was it possible? That even after everything she'd done he could still love her this much. He could still need her.

She thought back to the day before, the pounding of the hearts in her vault. How could he stand there? How could he hear the echoes of her past and still love her? How could he still be do desperate for her?

Was this real? She was beginning to believe it could be. No curse could make him that desperate, no curse could make feelings as strong as what she'd seen in him that morning.

But if it was…if it was real…

She had a chance, a chance to right one of her many wrongs. She had a chance to fix something she'd done.

Snow and Charming.

They were still missing, but if there were magic she could find them. She could bring them back.

Over their time in the Enchanted Forest Regina had forged a relationship with Snow again…it wasn't perfect and she certainly hadn't let the girl back in, but she'd known in the moment before the curse took them, the moment she'd run to her and cast the spell so they would be able to find each other that she would be devastated if she lost her. After everything they'd been through there was still love.

Up until now it seemed hope at bringing magic back was lost, but maybe…

She made her way into her office and opened the cabinet where she'd once laid her mother's book. She pulled out a potion bottle and she could feel her heart beating frantically as she made her way upstairs. She walked into the bedroom Robin had slept in the night before. She sat on the bed and pulled the covers back from the pillow. She ran her hand lightly over where he'd lain when she'd found him this morning. She leaned in a pulled a hair from the pillow where he'd slept.

She licked her lips and dropped it into the bottle she held in her hand. She took a deep breath before raising her hand to her head and pulling one of her own hairs out. She bit her lip, nervous about what would happen. In a few moments there would no longer be any doubt. She closed her eyes and dropped her hair into the bottle with Robin's and waited.

A moment ticked by, it seemed as if nothing would happen and she felt deflated almost as if it all really had been a lie, but then it started to glow. White light began to shine from the bottle and she watched as her and Robin's hair seemed to wrap around each other. The light grew brighter and tears fell from her eyes as she watched the beauty of it.

True love…she'd just bottled true love, and not just any love, but hers and Robin's.

The bottle seemed to vibrate in her hand. It was almost as if a sweetness filled the air and she laughed.

It was real.

It worked, she could bring back magic. She could save Snow and Charming. She could save their baby. She could find Elphaba's heart and return it. For the first time in so long she felt hope. Real hope and maybe, if she could make this right, this one thing she could believe herself worthy, or at least partially worthy of the love that Robin was offering her. No, it wouldn't change the horrible things in her past, but it would help her step into her future, a future that would leave the Evil Queen behind, a future where her family could be safe.

She stood from the bed and wiped the tears from her eyes. She ran down the stairs as fast as she could. She had to get to the well.

XXXXXXXX

Robin rubbed his eyes as he once again looked over the map. It had to be here, the answers had to be here. Whatever lead David had gotten had to have led him to Snow…so she was here he knew she was here, but it truly seemed there was no place they hadn't looked.

Magic, it had to be magically hidden. There was no other explanation. Somehow Elphaba had to have been able to keep enough magic to insure that it would be nearly impossible to find Snow.

Nearly impossible, but not completely. David had found her. Robin was sure of that. It was just a matter of looking in the right place.

Emma let out a frustrated breath and slammed the book shut she was looking through. "I don't even know what I'm looking for." She gestured to the book she'd gotten from Belle in the library that morning. "How the hell am I supposed to know what concealment spell was used?" She shook her head and looked up at Robin. "I need Regina."

Robin nodded and pulled his phone from his pocket. He hit send to dial her number and after several rings her voicemail picked up. He couldn't explain the nervousness that hit him when she didn't answer her phone.

"Hey, it's me." He said into her voicemail. "Emma and I could use your help here, call me when you get this."

His nerves hummed as he hung up the phone. He swallowed and shook his head. He was being ridiculous. She was probably in a meeting. She would call him back when she was finished.

He was still shook up from the dream this morning, that was all it was. Truthfully he'd been shook up about it the entire day.

He took a deep breath in an attempt to calm himself. If he didn't hear back from her soon, he would go to the office to check on her.

XXXXXXXX

Regina made her way to the well, she took a deep breath as she looked at the bottle in her hand. She closed her eyes and dropped it in. She opened her eyes to see light shining from the well. White light so intense she had to shield her eyes. She smiled as the magic seemed to rise, a light blue smoke seeped from the top of the well and began to curl around her. It caressed her like an old friend, but this time it wasn't darkness she felt from it, but light…love. It was love she felt in the magic as it swirled around her. She breathed it in and felt it all through her body. She held out her hands and allowed it to fill her. When she exhaled she concentrated on Snow, on where she was and suddenly she knew…she just knew. She turned from where she was even as the blue smoke rose up and began to envelop the woods around it and began to head towards the town.

XXXXXXXX

"Damn it Regina!" Robin said into the phone even as he stood to grab his things. "I need you to call me back!" He said shortly after once again getting her voicemail. His heart was like a jack hammer against his ribs now and he again heard the echo of her screams in his dream. He swallowed and said a bit more softly. "I need to know you're ok…please." He hung up the phone and looked at Emma. "I'm going to find her." he told her.

"Robin…" Emma said looking out the window. "I think you should see this."

"What is it." He walked to the window and looked out. He felt his heart drop in his chest.

"What the hell is that?" Emma wanted to know.

Robin swallowed and stared out the window as the blue smoke made it's way closer. "It's magic."

XXXXXXXX

Regina made her way through the woods. She allowed the magic inside her to guide her steps until she came to a clearing, not far from the well. An old tree stood there in the middle of the clearing. She could feel it, magic…it was here. Snow was here.

She walked to the tree and made several loops around it. She closed her eyes and laid her hand against the tree. She allowed the magic to flow through her body. She felt it flowing through her hand into the tree and the ground began to shake. The tree moved from the position it was in and began to twist up revealing a staircase. She swallowed and followed the stairs down into the ground beneath. It brought her to a hallway and she again focused on Snow. She bypassed several rooms as she allowed the magic to lead her. She came to the room at the end of the hallway. She finds the door locked but with a swipe of her hand the door flies open.

"Regina!" Snow stands from where she had been sitting and began to make her way to her. The sudden pain to her head was something she hadn't been expecting. She falls to the floor and before darkness takes her she hears Snow's panicked voice call her name again.

XXXXXXXX

The panic inside robin grows as the smoke settles around them.

Regina.

It's his only thought. She'd done this, she'd found a way to bring magic back and now…

Where the hell was she?

"I have to find Regina." He told Emma fear filling every inch of his body.

He took off out of the police station not even fully aware of where he was going. He had his phone out again and cursed when she didn't answer. He was making his way to the police cruiser when pain filled his head and he was hit with an overwhelming dizziness.

"Robin?" Emma brought her hand to his arm to steady him and he looked at her near panic.

"She's in trouble Emma, I have to get to Regina." he said it desperately.

Emma grabbed the keys from his hand. "I'll drive." she told him walking to the driver's side of the cruiser. "We know she had to go to the well to do this…we'll start there."

Robin got in the car his head still pounding. He had to get to her…he had to find her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please Review!
> 
> They are starting filming this week! Hoping for some OQ spoiler pics very soon!


	14. Chapter 14

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the delay in this chapter. As many of you already know from tumblr my husband and I have recently become foster parents to two toddler boys. They have kept me busy so writing time has been scarce.
> 
> Small trigger warning for some all around creepiness and douchebaggery.

Regina came too slowly. She could hear Snow's voice calling to her but felt as if she were in a fog. The room was fuzzy and her head pounded.

What had happened? She couldn't quite recall. The last thing she remembered was…

Magic.

She'd brought back magic. Suddenly it all came rushing back, bottling true love, going to the well, finding…

"Snow!" Regina snapped her eyes open but quickly shut them again when the light in the room caused her to feel as if her head would explode.

"Regina!" She heard Snow's voice and felt a hand on her face. "Regina can you hear me?"

Regina's head pounded. "The entire free world can hear you Snow, must you speak so loud?"

Instead of an answer she felt Snow nearly throw herself on top of her. "You're ok! Thank God you're ok! How did you find me? It feels like years since I have seen anyone. How long has it been? Regina, I'm so happy you're here!"

Regina winced and pushed the girl off of her as she tried to sit up. She wavered a bit when she felt her head spin but bit down on the pain and forced herself to sit up more. She fought the urge to close her eyes and fall back onto the bed she was currently laying on.

She looked around the room. It looked like a bedroom from her old palace. It was almost eerily similar to another room she'd once been trapped inside. It appeared that Elphaba had made sure Snow was comfortable (as comfortable as one could be when being held against their will) There was even what looked to be a terrace that looked over a valley, magically made no doubt.

"How long have I been out?" She asked Snow.

"Maybe fifteen minutes?" Snow guessed. "Regina how did you find me? Is Charming ok? How long have I been here? I've lost count of the days."

Regina shook her head trying to clear he thoughts. "I think that is a conversation left for later, after we get the hell out of here." Regina attempted to move her feet to the side of the bed.

"There's no way." Snow shook her head. "I've tired everything, it's impossible."

"Nothing is impossible." Regina answered. "I have magic remember." Regina raised a hand toward the door intending for it to fly open but instead was struck with an overwhelming pain that shot through her entire body. She let out a scream and nearly fell back into unconsciousness.

"Regina no!" Snow had screamed in the exact moment Regina attempted to use magic.

She finally managed to open her eyes as the pain began to ease. When she did she focused on her arm to see the cuff that had once been used on her by Greg Mendell. The memories that flooded into her when she looked at that cuff certainly weren't welcome ones.

"He put that on you after he knocked you out." Snow explained as she gently took her hand. "I tried to get it off, but couldn't."

Regina swallowed. "He?" She looked around again. Yes, she had been knocked out, but judging by Snow's condition she wouldn't have been able to get her to the bed. "How did I get in the bed?" She asked.

"I carried you." She heard a voice say and looked up to see a man enter the room whom she never thought she would see again. He smiled at her. A smile that sent chills down her spine.

"Sidney." Regina said flatly.

"Regina." Sidney smiled at her. "I didn't want to knock you out, but had no choice. I couldn't allow you to use magic and break Snow free."

"You're helping Elphaba." Regina said. It wasn't a question.

"I am." He confirmed. "She found me when we were all sent back to the Enchanted Forest. She freed me of my curse in the mirror and promised to help me if I help her."

Regina shook her head trying to clear it. Her thoughts felt fuzzy and unclear and the recent pain of trying to use magic was attempting to lure her back into unconsciousness.

"What could that witch possibly have that you want?" Regina asked attempting to clear her head.

"She can give me the one thing I have always wanted…the thing I've always needed." Sidney answered her.

"What could that possibly be?" Regina wanted to know. "You've already been freed from the mirror."

"That wasn't my only desire Regina, Elphaba promised me much more then that." He told her and stepped closer.

Regina shuddered at the look in his eyes. Madness…she recognized it well.

He lifted a hand and touched the side of her face. "She promised me you."

Regina swallowed feeling nearly sick. "Me?" She tried to sneer but her head was still fuzzy. "You plan to make me your prisoner?" She pulled back from his touch feeling sickened by it.

"Prisoner?" He asked almost surprised. "Of course not. I plan to make you my wife."

She let out a laugh. "I would never marry you."

Sidney shook his head. "You will Regina. You will marry me when she makes you love me."

She looked up at him. "You fool." She did sneer this time. "You were a goddamn genie! You know the rules of magic. It is impossible to make someone love you!"

"In most worlds yes, but the Wizard she plans to defeat has many powers and can make it possible. He has women in his court that he has preformed the spell on." He told her. "When she defeats him she will have the power to do it as well."

Regina shook her head. "She's lying to you. She is using you Sidney and when it's all over you will have nothing."

"I'll have you." He reached his hand out to touch her face and she shrunk back with a shudder.

"Don't you dare put your hands on me." She said in a dangerous tone. The thought of his hands on her made her cringe.

"Very soon, Regina you will change your mind about that." Sidney told her.

"I will never love you." She told him again.

"But you can love the thief?" Sidney questioned beginning to get angry. "You will allow him to put his hands on what's mine?"

"I'm. Not. Yours." Regina told him again. "And Robin is more of a man then you could ever hope to be."

Sidney leaned forward and took her chin into his hand. "You will be mine Regina." When she tried to jerk her head back from his touch he held tight. "And if I have to kill the thief to make that happen I will."

Regina swallowed seeing the truth in his eyes. "If you lay one hand on him, I will destroy you." She told him with fire in her eyes.

Sidney smiled that mad smile once again. "I will do whatever I have to do to have you my love." Regina felt bile rise in her throat as he let go of her and walked towards the door. "I will be back soon." he told them and exited the room.

Regina swallowed and looked back at Snow who was sitting silently.

"It's useless to try and talk him out of it." Snow told her. "Believe me I have tried. He's gone completely insane."

"So I gathered." Regina told her.

"But if you found me Regina then others will soon follow. People knew you were looking for me, they will figure it out and they will find us." Snow told her.

Regina simply stared at her.

"People do know you were looking for me?" Snow questioned. "Oh Gods Regina please tell me someone knew where you were."

Regina shook her head. "I managed to bring back magic and came straight here."

"But they're looking?" Snow asked every the optimist. "I know David is looking. He will find us, I know he will."

Regina looked at Snow still not willing to say anything.

"Regina?" Snow questioned, dreading whatever answer she would receive. "David is looking isn't he?"

Regina shook her head. "He was." She answered. "Snow" She started not sure how to tell her. "David disappeared yesterday." Regina shook her head. "He followed some lead, he didn't tell anyone where he was going, we assumed he found you and was being held by whoever had you."

She saw the panic fill Snow's eyes. "He hasn't been here…I haven't seen him." Snow told her.

"Ok, don't panic…there are a lot of other rooms in this place." Regina told her trying to soothe. The last thing she needed was for the girl to panic and go into premature labor. "I'm sure he's here."

"What if he's not?" Snow asked terrified. "What if he did something to him?"

Regina took her by the shoulders. "You're the one who is always spouting off about how you two know each other so well…about how you feel what happens to the other." Regina told her. "If he were hurt you would know."

Snow took a breath trying to calm herself and shook her head. "You're right…I would know. He has to be ok right?"

"Of course he's ok." Regina answered attempting to bring back some of her old snark. "If I couldn't do away with him then they certainly won't be able to."

Snow nodded and looked back at Regina. "Ok."

"Snow I need you to tell me everything you know." Regina told her. "I need to know what we are dealing with here."

"I don't know much." Snow admitted. "I know I woke up here with Elphaba and Sidney. I know she wants my baby, but won't tell me why. I know she left to go find something she claims will take her back to her land and has been gone a very long time. I've lost count of the days I've been here." She told her. "When she left I thought I would be able to talk sense into Sidney. He was a genie and has to know that the rules of magic would not allow what it is that Elphaba claims she can do for him. I thought I would be able to talk him into letting me go, but…"

"He's gone mad." Regina finished for her.

Snow nodded. "He terrifies me Regina, the way he talks about…his plans. He truly believes you will love him and that he can have you all for himself."

Regina sighed and looked around the room. "There has to be a way out of here."

Snow shook her head. "You're welcome to look, but I have tried everything." Snow looked down at her hands. "Regina, do you know why she wants my baby?"

Regina looked at her. She couldn't deny she was relieved to find her alive and unharmed. She wasn't sure when exactly it was she'd gone from hating her with every fiber of her being to caring about her, perhaps she always had in some way. Perhaps the little girl she'd first met on that runaway horse had always held a place in her heart. She nodded her head and told Snow of her meeting with Glinda, including the part about her them being sisters.

Snow listened and when Regina had finished she looked back up at Regina. "She lost her child to this man? The Wizard?"

Regina nodded. "She did."

"I know what that feels like." Snow told her. "To lose a child."

"As do I." Regina told her thinking of her time in the Enchanted Forest without her son.

"Now that we're here, perhaps we can find them again." Snow said always the hopeful optimist.

Regina laughed. "They've already found us. Hook went to them with the storybook. They came back. It was Henry and Emma who managed to break the curse on me. Later Elphaba broke it on the rest of the town. She wanted it broken. She wanted me to suffer."

Snow blinked and tilted her head in question.

"When we were under the curse I was married to Robin and Roland was our son. When Henry and Emma woke me up and I realized none of it was real…" Regina shook her head. "Elphaba had given me everything I'd ever dreamed of in that cursed life and she wanted to see me lose it. She wanted me to know what was happening before she broke it. She wanted me to suffer as I lost everything. Glinda said as she researched our mother…my life, she believed that I stole something from her. That if somehow Cora had kept her that her son would still be alive. She blames me for everything."

"But you didn't lose it, did you?" Snow asked and Regina looked up at her. "Sidney said you were in love with the thief…you fell in love with him?"

Regina swallowed. "I did." She finally admitted. "When the curse broke Robin and I were very confused about our feelings, but Roland…he was very upset. I was the only mother he'd ever known since Marian died before he could remember. He refused to even talk about a the time before the curse. He was afraid he would lose me." She sighed. "So Robin stayed with me at the house. I had convinced myself his feelings for me were a lie but…"

"They weren't." Snow smiled at her.

Regina shook her head and gave her a small smile. "They weren't." She agreed.

Snow smiled fully. "Regina that's wonderful, you've found love."

Regina rolled her eyes. "Leave it to you to be sickeningly optimistic when we're locked in a dungeon."

"True love always wins Regina!" Snow told her. "True love always finds each other! Regina, Robin will find you!" she told her with excitement.

"How is it possible that you make me wish I were unconscious again?" Regina asked her.

"He will find us!" She went on as if Regina hadn't spoken. "Then I will find Charming!" She laughed a little. "Regina, everything's going to be ok!"

Snow threw her arms around Regina's neck. "We are going to get out of here! I know it."

Regina pulled back from her and straightened her clothes. "Rule number one Snow, Never hug me again!"

Snow laughed. "My baby is going to be safe and once we are out of here you will get Elphaba's heart back and put it back in her chest. We will be able to help her Regina. We can help her to heal and maybe even help her save her land."

Regina rolled her eyes, but she couldn't deny that she felt hope in her heart as well. The night she'd told Robin she wanted to return her sister's heart and try to help her he'd looked at her with love and trust then told her he believed she could do anything. He believed in her, her children believed in her, Snow believed in her. There were people who believed in her now, in her ability to make things better and with that belief maybe she could finally start to believe in herself.

XXXXXXXX

Robin's heart pounded as Emma drove them to the well. He could only recall being this scared one other time in his life and it was the day his wife had died. He needed to find her. He couldn't get through it if something happened to her.

When they finally made it to the well he cursed. He'd hoped somehow how she would still be here. He'd hoped to find her waiting for him.

He'd felt hope when he'd seen her car parked off the road near the clearing, but she wasn't here. She wasn't anywhere. She wasn't answering her phone.

Where the hell was she?

"Robin" Emma said for the third time. He snapped his head up to look at her feeling despair in his entire body. "You have to calm down." Emma told him. "I need you to be calm."

"Emma she's out there and she's hurt. I can feel that she's hurt." He told her.

"I understand you are scared." She laid a hand on his arm. "But right now you are our best hope of finding her and I need you to think clearly."

Robin took a breath and nodded. "Ok" he knew better then anyone that panicking did nothing for anyone. "Ok, you're right."

"You are a hunter." Emma said. "You've been hunting all your life. Which would also mean you know how to track." Emma told him. "So that is what you are going to do. You're going to track where Regina went."

Robin swallowed. He could do that. This was the woods. This he knew. He began to look around for any traces of where Regina may have went. He found it in the form of a broken branch just outside the clearing.

"Here." He told Emma and she ran over to where he was. "She was here." He pointed towards the woods. "She went this way."

They began the painstaking process of tracking where she had gone, backtracking several times in their attempts to find her. It took well over an hour before they finally came to the clearing. The large tree stood in the middle like a beacon.

Emma shuddered. "Do you feel that?" She asked and he looked at her in confusion. "Magic." She told him. "There's magic here."

"She's here." Robin stated.

Emma nodded. "I think so, but the entrance has to be hidden somehow."

"We will find it." he told her.

He and Emma split up in different directions looking for anything that may give them a clue, trap doors…anything, but came up with nothing. As Emma began to make her way closer to the tree she could feel the magic seem to grow stronger. She walked closer to it to examine it's branches. She placed a hand against the trunk much as Regina had earlier that day. She felt the magic vibrate up her arm. It was like an energy that was pulling her into it.

"This is it." She told him and Robin rushed to her side. "I can feel it. It's here."

"Open it." Robin urged.

"I don't know how." Emma told him.

"Emma, you have magic, you can do this." He told her.

Emma shook her head. "I don't know how to use it." She told him. "I can't control it."

"You can." He insisted. "You need to focus. You need to think about all the reasons you need this to open. You can."

Emma swallowed and laid her hand against the tree. She thought about her parents, her brother or sister. She thought about Henry. Regina…he needed Regina. He loves her. He loves his grandparents. He needs them all in his life. She felt the tree vibrate against her hand and it began to move revealing the staircase that Regina had recently walked down. Emma felt for the first time since she'd come back that everything would be ok. They would find her parents, they would find Regina. Everything could finally be made right and normal again.

XXXXXXXX

They heard the sound of the staircase moving from where they were. "Regina, someone's here." Snow told her before Sidney burst back into the room.

"So the search party has arrived." Regina smirked.

"Not a party." He told her. "Two, It seems your thief and I will be having it out now." He showed her the knife he held by his side.

Regina felt her heart stop. No…she would not let this happen. She would not let Robin be hurt. "I will kill you before I let you hurt him." she told him.

"When Elphaba gains the Wizard's power and you love me, you will forgive me." He told her.

Regina swallowed as panic filled her. "Sidney, you don't have to do this, don't hurt them. I will go with you. Just leave them alone…We have a child, he needs one of us."

"I'm sorry Regina, it's the only way I can insure Snow does not escape."

Regina looked at the man, there would be no convincing. He'd lost his mind. She looked around as she heard Robin yelling for her. She heard Emma's voice as well. Would he kill her too? Would both of her children be left with no one? She couldn't let this happen. She couldn't let him win. She heard Robin calling for her. She heard his voice coming closer. She heard doors being smashed in before he moved on continuing in his path to find her. She couldn't let him die. She couldn't lose him. She heard as he moved to the door of the room they were in. She watched as the door was kicked in.

"Regina!" He said the moment he saw her and began to make his way to her. She saw Sidney move from his spot in the room. She saw him raise the knife.

"No!" She shouted and threw her hands out. The entire room filled with white light and she felt what could possibly be described as the worst pain she'd ever felt radiate through her body from the bracelet attempting to keep her powers at bay. She screamed in pain, saw nothing but white before sinking into the darkness.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Review Please, as you know it's my crack!
> 
> I'm hoping to get another update out on this story by next week. This chapter gave me some trouble, but the next one is completely mapped out in my head. I just have to write it.


	15. Chapter 15

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks to all who read/followed/reviewed last chapter. I have actually planned to bring Sidney back from the beginning of this story. Honestly the guy's obsession with Regina has always freaked me out a little. All it took was him looking at her and he was ready to kill for her. He didn't even know her, then proved his creepiness by making his wish to "look upon her face" proving it was never about her but rather her beauty. Just creeps me out.

Robin leaned in, placed a soft kiss to Regina's head and ran a hand softly through her hair. It had been nearly two days since their encounter with Sidney and she had yet to wake. Tinkerbell had come as soon as they had called for her. She checked Regina over and healed her head where she had been knocked out previously. She'd told him she just needed to rest, to regenerate her energy.

When he'd entered the room where she was being held the only thought in his mind was relief at her safety. He hadn't even thought about the possibility there was any danger to himself. He'd seen Sidney come at him from the corner of his eye. He hadn't had time to defend himself and as he turned the knife the man had held had very nearly sank itself into his chest, but then he'd heard Regina's scream. The light had been blinding. When he was able to see again Sidney had been frozen in his steps and Regina laid lifeless on the floor.

The cuff that had been on her arm to stop her from using magic had been shattered into pieces and she just laid there…so still. She'd looked so small and fragile in that moment. His heart had nearly stopped at the sight. He'd ran to her instantly and was only able to breathe again after pulling her into his lap and feeling her pulse against his fingers.

After Tinkerbell had healed her external injuries they'd transported her back here to her home, her bed where he knew she would be most comfortable. Despite what the fairy had said about her needing to rest Robin was not going to feel ok again until she opened her eyes.

He'd sat by the bed every since. People had come and go, but he had not left her side. He checked on her every few minutes hoping to see her awake again. Hoping for her to wake and argue with him about something…anything. He only wanted to hear her voice, to see her smile. Hell he would even settle for her stirring in her sleep, but so far she hadn't moved. She just laid there in bed, so very still, the only evidence of life the soft rise and fall of her chest.

"Please Regina, just open your eyes for me." He whispered as he stroked her hair lightly. "I'm not going to stop worrying until you wake up and talk to me. I'm sure I'm annoying you with all this attention. Just wake up and tell me to leave you alone and I swear I will…just please let me see those beautiful brown eyes."

He watched her for a moment but was met with silence.

He sat back in his chair and attempted to shift to a comfortable position. He slept in small fits, but it never lasted long. Every time he closed his eyes he heard her scream and saw her laying lifeless on the floor.

Tinkerbell had told him the only way the cuff could have been broken was through light magic and very powerful light magic. They'd freed Charming who was being held at the other end of the hallway. Apparently the "lead" he'd followed was Sidney himself. He'd seen him in town when he'd gone on a supply run. He'd thought he looked suspicious and after scribbling a note to Emma had followed him. Sidney had caught on at some point and lured him into the woods, then knocked him out much as he had done to Regina.

The thought of that man hurting the woman he loved made Robin see red. He'd wanted to kill him after things had calmed down and he'd realized that Regina was still alive. It had taken everything he had in him not to wrap his hands around his throat and choke the life from him. The only thing that had stopped him was being unwilling to let Regina go even for a moment, but the thought had most definitely crossed his mind that once he was sure Regina was ok he might make his way over to the jail and beat the shit out of him.

That was if he was willing to ever let Regina out of his site again. Looking at her now Robin wasn't sure if he would ever be willing.

It wasn't just worry he felt, it was anger as well. He was so angry with her for going off by herself, but if he was honest it wasn't just her he was angry with. He was angry with himself. Angry that he hadn't followed his instincts after his dream. That he'd left her alone.

Snow was ok. She'd been checked out by Dr. Whale and he'd given her and the baby a clean bill of health. She'd been by to see Regina twice already. The boys had also been by. Both of them had needed to be reassured that she would be ok and once she got the rest she needed she would be back to herself in no time. Robin had a hard time convincing as he was just as scared for her as they were.

Henry and Roland were both staying with Emma. Robin thought it better for him to focus all of his energy on Regina both now and once she woke although they'd both made him promise to call as soon as she was awake.

Robin sighed and ran his hands over his face. He had a half thought of trying to get some sleep when he heard it. She gave a small sigh and made a sound. He shot up from his chair and took her hand in his.

"Regina?" He leaned forward.

"Mmm." Was all he heard.

He leaned in closer to her ear and ran a hand through her hair. "Come on Regina, open your eyes for me." He placed a soft kiss to her cheek. "Please."

"Robin?" Her voice was slightly horse from not being used and she coughed a little.

Robin smiled so happy to hear her speak. "I'm right here Regina, can you open your eyes for me?" He watched as her eyes fluttered open and laughed. He felt so much relief seeing her eyes again. Finally he felt like he could breathe.

Regina blinked a few times as she looked into his face. She raised a hand to his cheek. "Robin?" She ran her hand along his face. "What happened?"

"You don't remember?" He asked.

Regina shook her head trying to clear it. "I went to find Snow and…" she paused for a moment thinking back. "Sidney was…" He eyes widened and she sat up in a near panic as the memory of Sidney coming at him with the knife flooded her mind. She tore at his shirt attempting see the wound she was sure would be there. "You were hurt!"

Robin took her hands into his in an attempt to calm her. "I wasn't, I'm fine. You used your magic and saved me." He told her.

Regina shook her head remembering. "No I couldn't I had on the cuff, it stops my magic, I…"

"You shattered the cuff Regina, you used light magic and saved me. Sidney was frozen before he could get to me. You saved me." He told her again. He raised a hand to her hair and ran it down her cheek. "You saved everyone."

Regina swallowed and looked at him. He looked ok. She ran her hand over his shirt and brought it back to his face. "You're ok?"

"I am." He assured her.

She let out a sigh of relief and allowed herself to be pulled into his arms. She rested her head against his chest. "Snow?" she asked. "David?"

"They're both ok, the baby's ok. Everyone is safe Regina." He told her.

She swallowed and pulled back from him. "Where's Sidney?"

Robin's eyes darkened slightly. "He's in jail."

Regina nodded and shuddered thinking of him. The eyes that were no longer sane, the delusion that she would be his wife. "Good." she let out a shaky breath. "My sister?"

"We haven't found her yet." He told her, but we did find her heart. It was in a vault where we found you."

Regina nodded. "It's my fault." She told him.

"What's your fault?" He asked.

"Sidney." She clarified. "He lost his mind because of me…He was a slave in my mirror then I had him locked up for so long." A tear slipped down her cheek.

"Regina, no." He wiped the tear from her cheek. "I will not let you blame yourself for his obsession with you. He was obsessed long before he was cursed into your mirror and it's my understanding that he is the one who cursed himself there."

Regina shook her head. "I led him on though and here in Storybrook…"

"Regina this was not your fault." He told her firmly. "That man has lost his mind, he's delusional and a danger to everyone. He's safely locked up now. Everyone is safe and I will never let him come near you again."

Regina shuddered thinking of him again of the way he looked at her, the way he touched her as if she were to be his most prized possession. She moved her feet to stand.

"No, hey, you've been out for two days, I'm not sure you're ready to be moving around just yet." He told her.

She shook her head. "I want a shower." she said simply and he could see from the determination in her eyes there was little point of arguing.

"Why don't you wait until tomorrow when you're feeling stronger?" He asked her.

She thought of the place where Snow had been…how it had been so similar to the room Leopold had often locked her away in and shook her head. "I just want to wash it all off of me." She told him. "That place…him…I just want…"

Robin shook his head. His mind hadn't even gone there but now… "Wait, Regina did he…" He swallowed finding himself choked up at the words. He would kill him. He would kill him with his bare hands. "Did he hurt you?"

Regina shook her head. "No" she told him when she saw what he was thinking she took his face in her hands. "No Robin he didn't, it's just" She sighed. "That place, it was so much like my old castle, where I lived with Leopold and I…" she shook her head. "I just need to feel clean again."

Robin let out a breath and nodded his head. "Ok, but I think you're still a bit weak for a shower." He ran a hand through her hair. "How about I run you a bath?" He asked. "The boys wanted me to call as soon as you woke up, they will want to talk to you. How about I run you a bath while you talk to them?"

Regina nodded wanting to hear the voices of her boys desperately. "Ok." She agreed and that fact that she put up no argument told Robin just how tired she still was. He walked into the bathroom to start the water for her and decided to give her some time on the phone with the boys. He looked around the room for something relaxing to put in it for her but was dumbfounded. This wasn't exactly his area of expertise. He picked up some bottles that laid by the bath tub and sniffed at each one of them. He found one that smelled a bit like lavender and thought that sounded like a good idea…He'd heard someplace that lavender was supposed to be relaxing. He poured some into the tub and watched as bubbles rose up. That was good right? Women liked bubbles. He shrugged his shoulders and poured in a bit more.

They would have to talk he thought as he walked around lighting various candles around the room, but not tonight. No tonight he would pamper her and make sure she was feeling back to herself. He was still upset with her, still angry at her for going off by herself the way she did, but all he wanted for tonight was for her to feel relaxed and to get some more rest.

He turned off the water and walked back into the bedroom just as she was hanging up with the boys. "Emma's going to bring them home tomorrow afternoon sometime." She told him.

He nodded and held a hand out to her to help her from the bed. She stood and wobbled a bit when struck by a wave of dizziness. Robin shook his head and shifted to pick her up in his arms.

"I can certainly walk myself into the bathroom." she objected and Robin shook his head.

"Would you stop being so pig headed and let me help you?" He asked.

Regina looked slightly offended by his words but then couldn't suppress the laugh when she looked at the tub. "Do you think you added enough bubbles?"

Robin shrugged as she set her down on the side of the tub. "Women like bubbles." he told her.

Regina chuckled. "I suppose we do." She sat there looking at him expectantly and he raised a brow in question. "You're the one who told me to stop being so…pig headed was it?" She grinned at him. "Are you going to help me with my clothes?" She looked down at the pajamas she wore. "How did I get in these anyway?"

"Tinkerbell did her magic thing." he told her and swallowed. He raised his hands to the buttons on her shirt. Regina allowed him to unbutton the top and shrugged out of it completely naked now from the waist up. Robin swallowed and moved to stand. He extended a hand to pull her up then knelt back down to pull her pants down her legs bringing her panties with them. Regina allowed her hands to run through his hair as he sat on his knees before her.

"Will you be joining me?" She asked and he looked up at her from his position. She was tempting. Gods was she tempting.

"I'm not sure you are quite steady enough for that kind of activity my love." He grinned up at her.

"Activity?" she asked innocently. "It's just a relaxing bath." She teased.

"You and me naked together Regina will be anything but relaxing." He told her and leaned in to place a kiss to her stomach.

She grinned when he stood and he couldn't resist running his hands up the sides of her body. He leaned in and placed a chaste kiss to her lips. "I'm going to fix you something to eat." He told her. "You are going to climb into this tub and relax for a bit."

"Yes sir." She mocked and turned to step into the tub.

He shook his head at her smirk then turned to walk out the door and made his way into the kitchen. He fixed several different things for her knowing she would claim not to be hungry and knowing she would likely be picky. He thought taking her a variety would be his best bet. He made his way back up to her room and set the tray on the night table beside her bed. He went to the dresser and pulled out a simple black night gown for her. He struggled a bit more in picking out panties. For his own sanity he wanted to pick out something that wouldn't drive him crazy when he helped her into them, but the woman owned nothing but lace, something he'd always loved when they'd been living their cursed lives together. He pulled out a pair of black lace and laid them beside her night gown then made his way to the linen closet to get fresh sheets for the bed.

It wasn't that he didn't want to be with her tonight. The fact of the matter was he wanted to be with her most of his waking moments and after months of not making love to her…well her standing naked in front of him and inviting him into her bath was quite hard to resist, but the fact was that he was still nervous of her condition and he didn't want to push things to quickly. He also wanted to talk to her before they were together physically again. He needed them to be on the same page here because for him there was no going back. He wanted her, but he wanted all of her. Not just her body but her, the woman he loved.

After changing the sheets he walked back into the bathroom to find her leaning back against the tub with her eyes closed. "You know it's not safe to fall asleep in the tub."

Regina smiled but didn't open her eyes. "I have you here to save me should I slip under the water."

"Indeed you do Milady." He told her and walked to the counter to lay down her nightclothes and a fresh towel.

She opened her eyes and moved to sit up a little and Robin swallowed as her breasts cleared the bubbles. "Are you sure you don't want to join me?" she asked. "The water feels fantastic." She smiled at him. "You look as if you need to relax."

Robin shook his head. "You won't be seducing me tonight darling." He told her. A look of disappointment crossed her face. After everything that had happened she wanted nothing more then to feel his hands on her body, to feel him inside her. She missed his touch and now that she had finally admitted to herself just how much she loved him…and to the fact that he loved her as well all she wanted was to be with him.

He picked up a towel and walked closer to her. "It isn't that I don't want to Regina." He leaned in and ran a hand through her wet hair. "Because I do. I don't think there is a man alive who wouldn't want you right now."

"But?" she asked knowing it was coming.

"But, you have been through one hell of an ordeal. Add to that the two of us need to talk…really talk before anything…happens between us. I don't think tonight is the time." He told her.

She sighed, but also knew he was right. She moved to stand and Robin wrapped the towel around her. She moved into him, just wanting to feel his arms around her and he obliged her. He held her close to him and breathed her in. He truly loved this woman more then he ever thought possible. He helped her dry then helped her dress and picked her up once again to carry her to the bedroom.

"I'm steady enough to walk now you know." She told him.

"I know." He answered and placed a kiss to her head. "Let me take care of you Regina."

Regina felt tears sting her eyes as he sat her down on the bed. "No one's every wanted to take care of me." she told him and his heart broke for her.

"Well now someone does." He told her. "And I always will."

She brought her hands to his face. "Thank you."

He smiled at her. "You're welcome." He gestured to the table. "I brought up some food."

She shook her head. "I'm not hungry."

Robin rolled his eyes exasperated, and also slightly amused that she'd had the exact reaction he knew she would. "You need to eat."

She pouted a bit and set back against the head board. "What did you bring?"

Robin shook his head and gestured to the tray. She picked at it just as he knew she would. She looked better. Some of her color had come back and that relieved him. Another night of sleep and she would probably be feeling herself again.

When she insisted she didn't want anymore he took the tray back downstairs after settling her under the covers. He walked back up to her bedroom after dealing with the left over food. "Do you need anything else?" He asked softly and she turned her eyes to him.

"Yes." she told him and he stepped closer. "I need you to hold me Robin."

He looked at her and relief flooded him that she was here, that she was ok. He felt tears sting his eyes and he smiled at her. "That is something I can do."

He moved to the bed, pulled back the covers then took off his shirt. Regina watched him as he climbed in beside her and she took a breath when he pulled her into his arms. After settling herself against his chest she let out a sigh of contentment.

"Do you realize that is the first time you have actually asked me to hold you?" He asked her.

She looked up at him for a moment and he grinned down at her. "Normally you say you need me to keep you warm."

"That's what I meant." She teased. "Give me a break…I'm very tired."

Robin chuckled and stroked her hair as he watched her eyes grow heavy.

"Robin, there's something that I need to tell you." She said.

"What's that?" he asked unable to resist placing a soft kiss to her hair.

"I love you." she told him closing her eyes.

He froze in his movements shocked to hear the words from her lips. He looked down to find her breathing had evened out against his chest. "I love you too." He whispered.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok, I know, I'm sorry everyone is ready for smut and you are going to get it I swear. I had originally intended to give it to you in this chapter but I got involved in this scene and it ended up being much longer then I anticipated, and they still need to have a conversation…a very serious conversation.
> 
> Please Review. Not only is it my crack but I also would love to hear what you are thinking!


	16. Chapter 16

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all for your kind words. You are all wonderful! Finally your patience has paid off! Hope you enjoy!

Robin laid awake as the first light began to shine through the bedroom window. It was very early, or perhaps the better term would be very late for him. He'd lain awake all night long. Every time he's closed his eyes he'd seen Regina laying on the ground looking so small and still. He still felt absolute terror at the thought of what may have happened to her.

So he hadn't slept. Instead he'd held her against him all night, taking solace in the feel of her breath against his chest, allowing the feel of her being wrapped in his arms to comfort him.

He'd grown angry as the night wore on. When she'd woke the night before he'd been so relieved to have her awake and looking at him he hadn't allowed himself to dwell on his anger. He hadn't allowed him self to think about how this could have all had another ending.

An ending that didn't end with her wrapped in his arms breathing softly against his chest.

How could she have been so careless? What would have happened to Henry and Roland had they lost her?

What would have happened to him? The thought of losing her terrified him. Not only because he'd been through the loss of the most important person in his life before, Marian's loss had been almost more then he could handle and the only thing that had gotten him through was his little boy.

But the thought of losing her struck more fear into him…more pain into his heart then the memory of losing his wife.

With Regina it was as if they were two sides to the same coin. Very different, yes, but also very similar. His feelings for her were something he wasn't sure could ever be put into words. He needed her like he'd needed no other. When she was in pain he felt it. When she needed him he knew. He felt connected to her even when they were apart and if he were to lose her, he thought it would literally tear him apart.

So he'd lain there and as he had he'd allowed his anger to take hold of him. Anger that she could be so careless with her life. That she could think so little of herself that she would walk into a dangerous situation with no thought of what may happen to her, with no thought of the people who would be affected.

Even in his anger he hadn't let go of her. If anything he'd clung to her more fiercely. As if somehow holding her close to him would keep her out of harms way forever.

He felt when she stirred and held his breath. It wouldn't do to yell at her when she first woke, but the longer he dwelled on it, the more his anger began to come to the surface. He wanted to yell at her…he wanted to rage. He wanted to make her understand under no uncertain terms that her life mattered and to more people then just him. He thought of his son, the little boy who still didn't like to talk of the time before the curse because he feared somehow it would cause him to lose the only mother he'd ever known. He thought of Henry and how he'd come back here to break a curse and how he'd been reluctant to leave her every since.

He thought of the people in town who had become her friends. People who cared…who loved her. He thought of Snow White who she'd once been hell bent on destroying but now whether either of them liked it or not they were family and had a love for each other that neither of them could understand fully.

And she'd been willing to risk throwing her life away.

She moved against him and he tensed. As if she sensed it she opened her eyes and moved her face against his shoulder so she could look at him. She brought her hand up to lay against his chest.

"Good Morning." she sighed quietly.

"Good Morning." He said it gruffly and in Regina's sleepy haze she took the tone of his voice as just having woken up instead of him being awake all night brooding.

"Did you sleep well?" She asked and nuzzled her face into his neck.

"Mmm." He grunted, not wanting to bombard her with this conversation quite so early.

She brought her hand up to his face and placed a light kiss to his jaw. "I always sleep better when you are with me." She told him.

It was almost as if he were at war with himself. His anger at her telling him to ask what the hell she'd been thinking, but the part of himself that was relieved she was alive wanted to stay in this embrace and hold on for dear life. He wanted to drown in her scent, in the feel of her. He wanted to hold her against himself forever and make sure no harm would ever come to her again.

The anger won.

"You need to eat." he told her thinking of the night before and how she'd picked at her food. Anger seemed to flood him again at the thought. Why in the hell did this woman refuse to take care of herself? He moved from under her and stood by the bed. "I'm going to make you breakfast."

Regina blinked in confusion when he moved from the bed. She'd been content to lay there with him and feel the warmth and safety of his arms around her. "I would rather stay in bed with you for a while."

He turned back to look at her and shook his head. "You need to eat. Stay here, I will bring it up." He told her before turning to exit the room.

Regina sat back against the head board. The mood had certainly changed since last night. He was upset. She could see it on his face. She could hear it in his voice. Robin was not good with masks the way she was. When he was feeling something it showed. It showed in the way he held himself, the look on his face. He was angry and at the moment he was fighting very hard against it.

She moved to stand and walked into the bathroom to splash some water on her face. It looked as if they would be having their talk sooner rather then later. There was no point in dragging it out.

She thought to the night before. He'd been so kind and gentle. He'd been loving and sweet. He wanted to take care of her. No one had ever wanted to do that before. It had made her feel special and loved.

He'd stood with her naked in front of him and instead of taking her to bed and doing what she knew he'd been wanting to do for so long he'd dressed her and held her through the night.

She might have been offended he hadn't taken her against a wall while she'd stood bare in front of him if she hadn't seen the way he looked at her, the way he'd taken in every inch of her body. He'd looked at her with reverence, with longing and with love but he hadn't given in to the needs of his body. Instead he'd pampered her and showed her more care then anyone else in her life had ever bothered to.

There had been something deeply intimate about it, allowing herself to be vulnerable in front of him, allowing him to see all of her and trusting that he would take care of her. She'd never before put her absolute trust in someone like that. She didn't allow vulnerability. She didn't allow people to see her weak, but she'd trusted him to and he hadn't let her down.

She closed her eyes at the memory. Had she finally pushed him to far? Had he decided he'd had all he could take?

She walked back into her bedroom to find him standing there with a tray.

"I told you to stay in bed." He said to her.

"You told me to stay here." She raised her brow at him. "I wasn't aware I wasn't even allowed to go into the restroom to splash a bit of water on my face."

She saw the anger flash in his eyes and he shook his head. "Don't." He told her and set the tray down.

"Don't what?" She tilted her head.

"Don't pick a fight with me." He told her.

"Isn't that what you want?" She asked calmly. "A fight?"

He shook his head and gestured to the tray. "I want you to eat."

Regina shook her head and looked him straight in the eye. "You're angry with me."

Robin laughed without humor and ran his hands over his face. He turned from her and walked to the drawer to take out a t-shirt for himself. "You need to eat." he said again.

"I don't want to eat." She said shortly. She looked at his back and saw the tension there. "Has it finally happened then?" She asked fearing the answer more then she thought she ever would.

"Has what happened?" He asked with his back to her.

"You've finally had enough." She said so much calmer then she felt. "Have you finally made up your mind that I'm not worth the trouble."

Robin had heard of the term being so angry that you see red, but he couldn't say that experienced it until that very moment. "God Damnit!" He yelled and slammed his hand on the dresser t-shirt forgotten before turning to her. "Would you stop doing that?!"

"Doing what?" She demanded allowing her temper to take over. Anger was so much easier for her then what she was currently feeling.

"Waiting for me to walk out the door!" He told her. "It's not going to happen Regina! You can push, you can yell, you can shut me out but I'm not going anywhere!"

"Then what is this about?" She yelled back at him.

He stood back nearly shaking in his anger. The fact that she had so little faith in him, in his love for her hurt and certainly didn't help tame his temper. "What is this about?" He asked more calmly then he felt.

She stood across the room and nodded.

He shook his head that she could be so dense. "You could have gotten yourself killed!" He screamed and the dam broke. "You walked into a dangerous situation by yourself and you could have died Regina! That is what this is about."

"I didn't think…"

"No." He interrupted. "You didn't think." He tried to take a deep breath but found he couldn't control his breathing. "You didn't stop to think for one moment that you have a family…children who love you and need you! You didn't stop to think about me and what would happen if I ever lost…" He took a deep breath, tears nearly filling his eyes at the overwhelming emotions…he couldn't even say it. "You are everything to us!" He said it with passion. "And you were willing to risk it all because you are to damn stubborn to see that…to believe that there are people who love you more then anything in the world! People who would be devastated to lose you!"

She swallowed at the emotions she saw swirling in his eyes. "Robin…"

"It's obvious Regina that you don't value your life." He went on. "It's obvious you don't think yourself worthy of happiness and the family that you have, but you not thinking yourself worthy doesn't change the fact that you do have us Regina. We do love you and we would be lost without you." He shook his head. "How dare you gamble with your life that way…how dare you gamble with something that is so precious to me and those boys!"

She couldn't stop the tears from falling from her eyes. "I was trying to right a wrong." She whispered. She wanted him to understand.

"And in righting that wrong you could have cost us everything." he told her suddenly feeling tired. "You could have made us live our entire lives without you."

She shook her head. "I thought I could handle it."

"And you couldn't." He said flatly. "It terrifies me what could have happened had Emma and I not been able to track you." He shook his head. "All you had to do was wait…pick up the damn phone, tell us where you were and wait for us, but you went off on your own and put everything I hold dear in danger."

"Robin I didn't mean…"

"Do you have any idea what it felt like to see you laying on the ground after you used your magic? I could breathe…couldn't think. I've never been so scared in all my life." He told her.

She took a step towards him. "I'm sorry."

He shook his head feeling weary. "And then for you to stand here, expecting me to leave you." He looked up at her and this time tears did fill his eyes. "Do you think so little of me? Of my love for you?" He shook his head. "Why do you have such little faith in me?"

She moved to him in a moment and threw her arms around his neck. "I'm sorry." She told him again openly sobbing now. The one thing she'd tried to avoid all this time was hurting him and here he was in front of her with tears in his eyes. The very thing she'd tried to avoid she'd done. "Robin I'm so sorry." She turned her face into his neck and sighed in relief when his arms wrapped around her. She moved one of her hands to his face and placed a kiss to his jaw before resting her face against his cheek. "The last thing I wanted to do was hurt you."

"Having my love thrown back in my face does hurt Regina." He told her. "Having the one person I could never stand to lose continuously waiting for me to leave hurts like hell." He wrapped his arms tighter around her when she sobbed again. "Having the one person I believe in more then anyone else in this world not believe in me…"

"I do believe in you Robin." She interrupted and pulled back taking his face into her hands. "I need you to know that."

"So it's my love you don't believe in?" He asked.

She shook her head and placed a gentle kiss to his lips. "It's me I don't believe in." she told him. "Not you…never you."

"I love you Regina." He looked deep into her eyes. "Do you believe that?"

Another tear fell down her face and she nodded. "Yes." She leaned in and pressed another kiss to his lips. "I do."

He crushed his lips back to hers and she opened her mouth allowing him entry. He kissed her desperately attempting to put all of his feelings into it. He wanted her to know, to believe without a doubt that he loved her.

She pulled back and took his face into her hands. "I love you too."

He let out a small sob of his own at her words and pressed his lips to hers again. "I can't tell you how good it is to hear those words."

She smiled against his mouth. "I love you." She said it again. She stepped back and allowed her eyes to roam up his chest. She moved her hands to the smooth skin there and allowed herself the pleasure of feeling him. She looked back up at him when she heard his breath hitch slightly at her touch. She moved her hands down his sides and slid her arms around his waist. It was clear in her eyes what she wanted.

He let out the breath he was holding. "If we do this Regina, there is no going back."

She smiled slightly. "I don't want to go back. I want you Robin. I want you to make love to me."

"I love you." He told her again in a husky tone.

She smiled up at him. "Then show me." She told him. "Let me show you."

He pulled her back to him wrapping his arms all the way around her. He kissed her when he lifted her off the ground and walked towards the bed. He set her gently on her feet when they neared it and moved his mouth to her neck. He allowed his hands to roam up and down her sides before wrapping around her to lightly squeeze her bottom. He allowed his hands to linger there for a moment before moving his lips to her collar bone and sliding them farther down her legs. She felt him push the black night gown up and begin to run his hands along the skin underneath.

She moved her hands over his chest then to his back as she allowed them to slide ever lower. She gave his own bottom a squeeze in return and pulled his hips closer to her. She could feel his harness as he pressed against her. She moaned in the back of her throat as he allowed his hands to move up her night gown to lightly trace the line of her panties. She wanted to feel his skin against hers. She ground her hips against him and he let out a moan of his own.

He moved his hands further up her gown and Regina detached her lips from his chest long enough to raise her hands above her head so he could pull it off. She stood in front of him in nothing but her black lace panties and Robin couldn't help but look down and admire her beauty. She took his hands into her own and ran them up her stomach bringing them to her breasts. Robin cupped them in his hands kneading them softly before allowing his thumbs to flick over her nipples. Regina threw back her head in a moan and he grinned before leaning in to taste bringing one into his mouth.

She felt as if her body were on fire and she wanted more. She moved her hand over the smooth skin of his chest again before allowing her hand to trace along the line of his pajama pants. She could feel his muscles jump as she ran her fingers low over his stomach. She moved her hand down to cup him through the fabric of his pants. He let out a moan as she ran her hand over his length and felt nearly ready to explode already.

He moved his hands lower to her panties and allowed himself to drop to his knees in front of her. He pulled them down her legs and found himself looking up at her in the same position he'd been in the night before. He leaned in and placed a kiss to her stomach as he had last night, but this time didn't stop there. He moved his mouth lower and then lower still. He wrapped his arms around her and kneaded her bottom again before allowing his tongue to dip between her folds and flick over the throbbing bundle of nerves there.

Regina rocked forward with a gasp and was thankful he had a firm hold on her as she likely would have fallen to the floor without it.

"Robin" she called out his name causing him to increase his movements. She rested her hands in his hair as he took her to new heights of pleasure. Her hands fisted as she could feel her release build and she could feel her legs beginning to shake. He held her tightly in place as he continued pleasuring her with his mouth. Her knees buckled when the orgasm hit her but he held her up with strong arms allowing her to ride out the pleasure he'd just brought to her. When she stood breathless and quivering he stood bringing her with him as she wrapped herself around his waist. He leaned one knee on the bed lowering her onto it then stood to rid himself of his pants. He was throbbing for her and wanted nothing more then to bury himself inside of her.

He allowed his hands to roam back up her body and lowered himself gently on top of her. He kissed her deeply then moved his mouth to her ear. "I love you Regina." he told her and she gasped as he entered her.

She moved her hands to his face and brought him down to her in another kiss. He moved slowly at first allowing the pressure to build. He trailed his lips back down to her breast and gave each the attention she was aching for. All of the feelings in her body were overwhelming and it felt almost as if she would explode with it.

She arched her hips up to meet his thrusts to draw him deeper. He moaned and brought his mouth back up to hers. He slid his hands under her body and pulled her up as he sat up on his knees. Regina adjusted her position so that she was on her knees over him and began to ride each moaning at the angle of the new position.

"Robin" She gasped as she felt her climax beginning to build again.

"Look at me Regina." He panted in her ear and she pulled back so she could see his eyes. She gasped at the intensity she saw there.

"I love you" she whispered to him as she rested her forehead against his, never once allowing her eyes to break contact. He felt as her legs began to quiver and when she tightened around him in her climax he allowed himself to follow taking her lips in another kiss.

They held on to each other breathless as they continued to look into each others eyes. She tightened her arms around his shoulders as he allowed his hands to tangle in her hair.

"I've missed you." She whispered as she finally caught her breath.

He grinned. "And I you." he told her. "Although I must say, our real selves are better at that then our cursed selves ever thought of being."

Regina laughed as she let her hand weave into his hair. "And our cursed selves were pretty damn good." She leaned in for another kiss. "I think I could stay just like this forever."

"That sounds like a marvelous plan." he told her.

The stayed there holding on to each other for as long as possible neither willing to break the contact. He ran his hands over her back as she began to sag against him in exhaustion and shifted her so he could lay on his back. He pulled her to him to rest against his chest.

They laid together in silence Regina lightly running her fingers along the skin of his chest and he ran his hand softly over her back.

"Robin?" she broke the silence after a while and shifted so she could look at him.

He laid there feeling perfectly content with a soft smile on his face. "Hmm."

"I'm sorry I hurt you." She told him seriously. "That was the very thing I was trying to avoid doing."

He opened his eyes so he could look at her. "I forgive you." He placed a gentle kiss to her head. "But I never want you to doubt my love for you ever again." he told her. "If there is one thing you can know…that you can always be sure of Regina, it's that I love you."

She smiled softly and leaned up to place a kiss to his shoulder.

"I do want you to promise me something." He told her.

At this moment she would promise him the world. "Anything."

He smiled. "Never put yourself in the kind of danger you put yourself in to rescue Snow again." He ran a hand through her hair. "Trust me to have your back."

"I do trust you." She told him. "And I promise, if it can be avoided, I will not put myself in harms way."

He supposed he would have to settle for that. "How did you bring back magic?" He asked. "How did you make the true love potion work?"

"Us." she told him. "It was our love."

He smiled at that. "So now you know with certainty my love is true."

"I knew before that." she told him. "When you held me to you after your nightmare. I knew you loved me. It's why I tried the potion."

He smiled at that, happy that it hadn't taken a potion to prove his love to her.

"There's something else…something I haven't told you." She told him.

He opened his eyes as she propped herself up on her elbow to look at him. He shifted on to his side so he could look into her eyes.

She cleared her throat. "Years ago…before I became the Evil Queen, I was miserable and living in the castle with the King and Snow." She took a breath. "It was then that I met Tinkerbell. She came to me and wanted to help me. She said she knew what it was that I needed. She said if I could just find love again, if I could find my soul mate then I could be happy. She cast a spell with pixie dust to find him and it lead us to a tavern. There was a man who glowed green. His back was to me, I couldn't see his face. Tinkerbell told me all I had to do was walk in and meet him. He was the man I was fated to be with."

"You didn't go in." He said.

"No." she shook her head. "He never turned around…I never saw his face, but" she moved her hand to take his arm. She ran her hand over his tattoo. "I did see his lion tattoo."

Robin blinked before a grin spread across his face. "It was me?" He asked.

She nodded and smiled. "Yes."

"I was to afraid to go to you…I've found myself wondering since what our lives would have been like if I had." She told him. "But it's a decision I can't regret. If I had gone in there would be no Henry or Roland."

Robin nodded and took her hand into his pulling it up to his lips. "I think perhaps that timing is everything." He opened her hand then place his lips to the her palm as well. "Perhaps then wasn't our time." he grinned as he pulled her closer to him. "Although I will admit, I may regret the part where I could have been making love to you for all this time."

She laughed a throaty laugh and it brought a smile to his face to hear. She so rarely laughed that way. "I suppose then that we have some lost time to make up for." She leaned in and placed a kiss to his lips.

"Indeed we do" he agreed and rolled over pulling her on top of him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had planned to bring the boys back home in this chapter, but again it got away from me and was a bit to lengthy. As always please review!


	17. Chapter 17

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I want to thank everyone who read/followed/reviewed the last chapter. I love you all so much!
> 
> I do want to address a constructive review I received on the last chapter, firstly thank you for being constructive, it's much appreciated. As far as your feelings on Robin coming out selfish, I can see how it may seem that way, but the way I look at that scene and the way I was hoping it would come across was more that he was angry because of the way she feels about herself and because of those feelings she thought nothing of putting her own life in danger. As far as him being hurt and actually voicing that…well he has been hurt and for a long time. It's never easy when the one you love most pushes you away and Robin has put his own feelings on the back burner for a long time now. I think Regina needed to see this and the fact that his feelings are genuine and real. She needed to know that her pushing him away from her was not helping protect him, but rather had quite the opposite affect and hurt him deeply. No one wants to have their love questioned and when it is it hurts. In my mind there are no words Robin can say to make Regina see herself differently or to believe in herself she has to get there on her own, but he can point out to her that even though she may see herself that way there are others (him and the boys) who see her much differently and need her. Perhaps while she is on the road to finding herself she will in the future remember the people who would be devastated if they lost her. While we all love Regina and very often want to take her in our arms and hold her and never let anything bad touch her again, Robin is human too and she has done nothing but push him away. He has been patient because he knows that about her, but the humanity had to come out a some point. He's not a white knight hero with no feelings and her pushing him away hurt him. That is what I hoped to convey, but it may not have come across in the writing. Hopefully that explains it a bit to anyone who felt the same.
> 
> Sorry for the long author's note, but I did want to explain where I was coming from in their argument for anyone who may have been upset about the way things went down or if I didn't convey what I was trying to bring across in the writing . I always welcome kind reviews and questions, even if you don't agree with the way I have written something. It makes me a better writer. Again I thank you for your constructive and kind reviews and I hope that this chapter helps with your feelings on the last one. There is much more talking to be done and of course the long awaited reunion with the boys. Hope you all enjoy.

Robin laid on his side as he ran his fingers along Regina's torso. She laid with her eyes closed and a small smile on her face. Jesus, she was beautiful. Who would have thought a curse would bring him one of the most amazing blessings in his life.

She let out a sigh as his fingers traced between her breasts before they made their way up to her neck. He leaned in and placed a kiss to her lips and she opened her eyes to give him a lazy smile.

"Have I told you lately that you are the most beautiful woman on the planet?" He asked her.

She grinned and lifted her hand to his face. "You're not so bad yourself." She told him.

He smiled down at her for a moment before his brow furrowed. "I'm sorry I shouted at you."

Regina shook her head. "You were angry."

"I was." He agreed. "But I should have controlled it better."

She studied him for a moment. "You rarely lose your temper."

"True, but when I do it's quite ugly. I'm sorry I lost it with you." He raised a hand to push her hair back from her face.

"I'm not." She told him. "I'm glad something I did made you lose it."

Robin blinked an let out a short laugh. "Come again?"

Regina smiled back at him for a moment before growing serious again. "For you to lose your temper about something it would mean that something has to mean a lot to you." She traced her hand over his shoulder. "Which means I mean a lot to you."

"You mean everything to me." He told her.

Regina nodded and a tear fell from her eye. "That's why I'm not sorry you lost yelled at me." She shook her head. "No one has ever cared about me the way you do." She smiled and brought her hand back up to his face. "The fact that I could make a kind and gentle man who rarely gets angry see red because I put myself in danger…that means something."

Robin furrowed his brow. "Please don't do it again just to provoke me into yelling at you."

Regina laughed. "Well…" she paused and wrapped her arms around his neck. "That making up part was fantastic."

"Regina…" He said it as if her were speaking to a stubborn child.

"And I do love a good fight every now and then." She raised her brow teasing.

"Then cancel the cable the day of the Super Bowl." He told her. "I don't think my heart can take the thought of you being in danger again."

She giggled. "I promised you that I won't put myself in unnecessary danger again and I won't." She told him. "But I will protect my family Robin…at all costs."

"As will I." He told her. "And you are my family Regina."

She smiled at him. "I know, and you are mine."

He leaned in to kiss her. "I love you."

She smiled back at him. "I love hearing those words and knowing how true they are."

"I love saying them." He told her and leaned in to press a kiss to her jaw. "You know what else I love?"

She shook her head. "Spending the morning making love to my beautiful wife." He leaned in to place a kiss to her shoulder but then pulled back. "Except that I suppose you aren't technically my wife."

She raised her brow. "Our cursed memories are still so clear…It feels like I am."

He nodded. "What would you say if I asked if we could make it official?"

She pulled back and looked at him. "You want to marry me?"

He smiled. "Well, we already are married…in all the ways that matter, but I would like to be officially married to you, yes."

She looked into his eyes. "Are you sure?"

He laughed. "I am absolutely sure Regina. I want you to be my wife in every way."

She pulled him down to her and kissed him. "I want that too." She whispered.

"Is that a yes?" He gave her that crooked grin that always charmed her.

"Do I get sexual favors?" she grinned at him.

He smiled back at her. "Absolutely."

She laughed. "Then yes, I will marry you Robin Locksley." She pulled him back in for another kiss. "I love you."

"I love you." He whispered back. "Now, my first job as your official husband."

She held up her finger. "Not official yet." She teased.

"Right." He said. "Ok my job as your once cursed life husband, and official fiancé is to get you to take care of yourself…You need to eat something." He told her sternly.

She glanced at the tray he had brought up to the room earlier that had been left forgotten for hours. "My breakfast is cold." She told him.

"I will make you something else." He glanced at the clock. "Lunch this time."

"A husband who cooks." she grinned at him.

"Not husband yet." He tossed back at her.

"Right…being cursed married makes things confusing." She smiled enjoying the fact that they could be light with each other. Up until this point their relationship had been filled with tension. Not knowing what the future would bring, not knowing their true feelings for each other. She liked that they could joke with each other, there were so few people in her life that she could laugh with, or just be silly with sometimes.

When people thought of her they thought of The Evil Queen, or the uptight mayor. They never saw the young girl who was still in there, the one that enjoyed laughing and smiling. But Robin did, he saw every part of her and he didn't think of her as the queen or the mayor. He saw Regina. So few people only saw Regina.

"Ok." He dropped a kiss to her forehead. "I'm going to go downstairs, and see what I can round up for lunch."

She grabbed his arm before he could roll out of bed. "Are you sure you don't want to have dessert first." She smiled wickedly at him and ran her hand lightly between her breasts.

Robin cleared his throat as he watched her hand. "You need to eat." He told her, but he didn't move from his position. He felt his heart rate increase when she moved her hand to caress one of her own nipples and he felt heat shoot straight to his groin.

"Mmm…" She said as she arched her back. "I need you."

"Regina." He choked out wanting to hold on to his resolve but finding it incredibly difficult.

She opened her eyes and looked at him and knew she had him. She took his hand into hers and trailed it down her stomach. "I'm going to eat." She told him. "Just as soon as you touch me." She moved his hand between her legs and he moaned when he felt how wet she was.

"You need to keep up your strength." He told her even as he rubbed circles over her clit.

She arched her back and let out a long sigh. "I need to make love to my husband." She told him.

He gasped when she ran her hand along his hardening member. "Fiancé." He said it on a moan.

"Whatever." she said as she used her other hand to pull him down into a kiss.

XXXXXXXX

They went downstairs together and found their fridge stocked with take out containers from Granny's thanks to Snow.

Robin was pleased as he watched Regina eat a second portion of soup. It was a relief to see her up and moving and eating again. All in all she was recovering fairly quickly now that she was awake.

"So tell me what else you found in Elphaba's vault." She asked.

"We found her heart, which we brought back here." He told her. "There were some other things, looked like ingredients for potions which of course none of us has any clue what they are used for."

"I would like to go and look through them. It might give me an idea of her next move." Regina told him.

"Snow actually spent some time with her while she was there." Robin told her. "She said she didn't say much about her plan, but she seemed almost regretful."

"She didn't seen regretful to me when she broke the curse, but perhaps that's because she blames me…after all I am the one my mother kept." She shook her head. "I still can't believe she kept us from each other. Of course I shouldn't be surprised, she was born green…my mother never could have moved up the royal ladder with a green child weighing her down."

"It's hard to imagine giving up your child because of something so…"

"Superficial." Regina answered. "For most people you would be right, but my mother literally had no heart. Her only goal in life was power and status. She would have done anything to get it, including giving up a child that she thought would hold her back and selling her other to the highest bidder."

Robin shook his head. "I'm sorry." He laid his hand over hers. "I wish I had known you then…I would have tried to help you."

Regina shook her head. "She would have killed you for it." She moved her hand to link her fingers with him. "And I much prefer you alive and here with me."

Robin sighed. "She's pretty focused on her revenge." He told her. "Snow said that even as she could see the regret in her eyes nothing she could say phased her."

"She doesn't have her heart right now." Regina told her. "And revenge is something I understand. She wants to kill the person who took everything from her."

"Do you think her getting her heart back could change that?" He asked.

Regina shook her head. "No." She told him. "She will still hate him, but what Glinda said about her…" She paused. "She didn't seem to think that she would be able to take Snow's baby if she had her heart. It's why she removed it in the first place. Putting her heart back in won't make her not seek revenge on the wizard who killed her son, but it could stop her from taking Snow's child. It could stop her from knowingly putting someone else through what she is going through."

"I can't imagine what it would be like, to lose Roland." Robin said. "I can't even think about it."

Regina shook her head. "I would kill anyone who came near my children, I wouldn't hesitate, I understand her reasoning, but I can't allow her to take Snow's child."

He looked at her as she worried her lip. "You can stop her Regina, I know you can."

She looked up at him with worried eyes. "I wish I knew that for sure."

Robin shook his head and took her other hand into his. "You can Regina."

She looked back at him. "Why do you have such faith in me?"

"Because I love you…I know you, I know your determination. A few days ago you broke that cuff off your arm…it was a spell that couldn't be broken but you did it. You can do so much more then you give yourself credit for."

"I wish I had as much faith as you do." She told him.

"I wish that you could see yourself through my eyes, I wish you could see what I see when I look at you." He raised his hand to her face. "But until you can…until you can believe in yourself the way that I do I just want you to remember that you have me…you have the boys and we believe in you."

She smiled and leaned in for a kiss. "I know you do."

"Good." He smiled at her and stood. He took her by the hand and led her into the living room. She raised a brow when he laid down on the couch then held out his arm for her.

"What?" She asked.

"We're gonna take a nap." he told her.

Regina shook her head. "I don't nap." She told him. "I need to go and see if I can figure out what Elphaba is planning."

"Regina" Robin said exasperated. "You just woke up last night, you need to rest and recover."

"I'm fine." She told him.

"Her vault will still be there tomorrow Regina." He took her hand into his and tugged on it.

"I'm not tired." she said stubbornly.

Robin let out a huff. "Well I am." he told her. "I didn't sleep at all last night because I was to mad at you, I need a nap."

"Then you should take one." She answered and tugged her hand back again.

He shook his head. "See the thing is that I'm not going to be able to sleep without holding on to you and knowing you're safe here in my arms for…hell I don't know…the rest of my life maybe so I would very much appreciate it if you would come here so I can wrap my arms around you and get a bit of rest."

Regina bit her lip it was true she never napped. Her mother had always told her lounging around during the day was unacceptable, but she was a bit sleepy and his arms were so inviting.

He raised a brow. "It is your fault after all that I didn't sleep last night."

Regina let out a laugh. "No, that was the fault of your temper."

"You told me earlier you like my temper." He smiled knowing he had her.

She let out a huff. "Fine, I will lay here for an hour."

He grinned and tugged her hand again and this time she went willingly to settle on the couch.

"This can't be comfortable for you." She said. "I'm practically laying on top of you."

He grinned and placed a kiss to her hair. "It's perfect." He assured her.

XXXXXXXX

She woke to the feel of him placing his lips against her hair. She glanced up at the clock and groaned.

"Three hours!" She said and started to move.

Robin held tight to her she huffed against him. "So you were tired."

"No." She denied. "Your heartbeat just has a way of lulling me to sleep is all."

"I think there are some people here to see you." He told her and just as he did they heard the front door open.

"Mom!" They both heard in unison and a huge smile covered Regina's face.

"In here." She called and sat up on the couch.

Both boys rushed into the room and Regina was knocked back against Robin as they each threw themselves at her.

"You're ok!" Henry looked up at her and she could see tears in her eyes.

"I am." She told him.

Roland took her face into his hands so she would look at him. "Mommy we was so scared." He told her.

She wrapped her arm around him and pulled him against her. "I'm sorry I scared you baby, but I'm ok now."

Henry cuddled into her other side, but didn't say anything. She could see the relief on his face. She kissed him on the head and pulled him tighter to her.

"How about we have a family night?" Robin asked.

"We could watch a movie!" Roland piped up already excited about the idea.

"I would love nothing more then to spend a night with my boys." Regina told them both. Henry remained quiet with his arms wrapped around her. "Henry?" She asked.

He looked up at her a nodded. "As long as it's a good one."

XXXXXXXX

There was nothing better to make her feel herself again then to spend and evening with the people she loved most in the world. This day, first with Robin and then the boys had made her feel whole and strong again and the more time she spent with them the more she believed that everything would be ok…it had to be.

She left Roland's bedroom after tucking him in with a story then went to Henry's where she found him sitting quietly on the bed flipping through his story book.

"Are you ok?" she asked him. He'd been quiet throughout the evening.

He looked up at her and studied her for a minute. She felt a small pang in her heart at how grown up he looked in that moment. "You scared me." He told her.

Regina sighed and walked over to sit beside him. "Henry I'm ok."

He shook his head. "Now you are, but you really scared me. I've never seen you look the way you did when you wouldn't wake up."

"I'm sorry you had to see me that way Henry, the last thing I would ever want to do is scare you or Roland." She told him.

"Well you scared both of us." He told her flatly. "Roland cried when Emma made him come with us. He thought if he stayed with you, you would get better faster."

She swallowed as guilt swarmed her. Robin had been right, she had scared her entire family.

"It was really dumb to go off by yourself the way you did" He told her.

"I know." she agreed. "It won't happen again."

"Was it because of me?" He asked.

She furrowed her brow. "What do you mean?"

He shook his head. "Before Emma and I left…before Neverland I wasn't always nice to you."

"Henry…" She started.

He shook his head and interrupted. "Did you think that I would rather you save Grandma then for you to be safe?"

"Henry no didn't think that I just…" She paused and tired to find the right words. "I wanted to try and fix some of the wrong I have done." She told him. "I wanted to try and make up for some of it, to me that meant saving Snow."

"I did want Grandma and Grandpa to be ok, but not at the cost of you." he told her. "You should have waited for Robin and Emma."

"I know that." She told him. "And I have already promised him that I will not go off by myself again."

"Good." He nodded. "Because no matter what happened before…even when I was angry with you." He looked up at her with tear filled eyes. "I love you Mom, I don't know what I would do without you."

Regina's eyes filled with tears as well and she pulled him to her. He precious little boy who wasn't so little anymore. Her little prince. "I love you too sweetheart."

He pulled back from her and looked at her again. "Robin loves you too Mom." He told her. "He loves you a lot."

She smiled down at him. "I know."

"Do you love him?" He asked.

"Yes." She told him.

Henry smiled at her. "I'm glad." He laid a hand over hers. "I want you to be happy."

"My family makes me happy." She told him. "You, Roland and Robin make me very happy Henry…happier then I ever thought I would be."

"You deserve to be happy." He said.

She smiled a little sadly at him. "I'm working on believing that."

"Until you do, we'll believe it for you."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please Review! I need them like air lol. Ok, I'm exaggerating but I do like to hear your thoughts!


	18. Chapter 18

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, all. So sorry it has been such a long time. Things have been crazy. This is a shorter chapter but it's setting up the next one so I needed to end it here.
> 
> I so appreciate all of you who have stuck with me and encouraged me with this story. You are all wonderful and I love you very much.
> 
> I also wanted to address some very rude anon reviewers who have reviewed on this and my other story "The Knight's Protector" I write these stories as entertainment for myself and my followers who enjoy my writing. If you don't like them, you certainly aren't obligated to read them. If you do enjoy and have something you would like to say or would like to point out a mistake or something you don't like you are certainly welcome to do so in a constructive way. Being an ass is going to get you nothing and I've deleted every last comment you have made btw.
> 
> That's said. I hope you all enjoy Chapter 18!

Regina's nerves were on edge and had been every since the ordeal with Sidney. It was a terrifying thought that the safety of everyone she held dear seemed to rest on her shoulders.

Sure she had those who were willing to help, but she was the one who had to put her sister's heart back in. She was the one who would have to perform the spell to prevent her from removing it again and there was the very real possibility she would fail.

Of course she couldn't voice her concerns or fears because every time she did someone would come back with good always wins. The phrase made her want to roll her eyes because…no it didn't. She had been good once. She'd been pure and innocent and believed that true love would always win, but she'd ended up married off to an old bastard who didn't love her and had no use for her other then the obvious.

So no, good didn't always win, but she couldn't exactly voice that to her children who looked at her as if she were some hero who could save the world. She couldn't…wouldn't even voice it to Snow who despite all of the bad blood in their past Regina didn't want to make her face the horrid person her father had been. She could and had voiced her concerns to Robin, but he looked at her with such love and trust in his eyes and continually told her he knew with certainty she could do this.

It wasn't that it wasn't nice to have people who believed in her the way everyone seemed to, but damn it… What happened if none of this worked? What happened if she let everyone down?

And what would happen to her sister when all of this was over? Would her having her heart back even make a difference? She would undoubtedly still want revenge on the man who had destroyed her life.

So really what in the hell was she doing here?

She turned as she heard foot steps coming down the stairs to her vault. She expected to see Robin who hadn't been willing to allow her to far out of his sight in the last week but instead found herself face to face with Emma.

"You know." The blonde smirked as she leaned against the wall. "This place could really use some color. It's so…dark."

"Well I was The Evil Queen when I used it so that would make sense."

Emma shrugged. "You're not now though, so" she gestured around the room. "Yeah, color would be good and maybe a good dusting."

Regina rolled her eyes and turned her back. "What are you doing here?"

Emma shrugged and took a step forward picking up a strange looking box and examining it. "Just thought I would see how it's going."

"Robin sent you to check on me."

Emma shrugged and began to fiddle with the lock on the box in her hand. "He loves you and wants to be sure you're safe, but is worried you are beginning to get sick of him hovering."

Regina smiled a little at that. She would never be tired of Robin.

Emma tugged the lock in her hand with a little more force.

"I wouldn't open that unless you wish to become a very large rodent." Regina said without turning.

Emma made a face and set the box back down then looked at Regina's back. How in the hell had she even known what she was holding anyway? "What do you have eyes in the back of your head now?" To test her theory she made a face at her.

"I'm looking in the mirror Ms. Swan." Regina answered with some annoyance. "And I know plenty of spells that could actually make your face stick that way for several days."

Emma dropped her face back to neutral. She wouldn't put it past her. "Having any luck with Elphaba's things?"

Regina nearly rolled her eyes. "Did you come to give me another pep talk about how good always wins and everything is going to come out sunshine and rainbows?"

"Nope." Emma answered and plopped down on a bench. "Personally I think all of that is crap."

Regina turned with an eyebrow raised for once interested in what the other woman had to say.

Emma shrugged. "Good doesn't always win." She answered. "Good people die everyday at the hand of bad ones. In the world I grew up in being good isn't what helped you survive, being smart was."

The corner of Regina's mouth turned up slightly. "With the Charming genes it's a miracle you're still alive."

"You're hilarious." Emma answered dryly. "I think we both know I'm right though. Good doesn't always win, and really good is subjective. Everyone on every side believes themselves to be good or right. Your sister believes herself justified in what she is doing the same way you did when you went after Snow."

"I was wrong."

"Yes." Emma answered "But if you hadn't done those things, I may have never been born."

"That would be a shame." Regina said with sarcasm.

Emma just shook her head. "Henry would have never been born." When Regina was silent at that Emma continued. "If your sister hadn't cast this curse you probably wouldn't be with Robin now, you wouldn't have Roland and Henry would still be lost to you."

"So it's all about fate?"

Emma let out a sigh. "I don't know, I'm not pretending to be a philosopher here, but I do think everything happens for a reason and there are some things that are just meant to be. Just like I was meant to give birth to Henry and you were meant to raise him."

"So you could later come back for him and be the Savior."

Emma shrugged. "Or we were just both meant to be his moms." Emma looked down at her hands. "Speaking of that, I'm not sure I every really thanked you. For being there when I couldn't."

"I love him."

"I know." She answered. "The false memories you gave us prove that much." She shook her head and stood. "Anyway I guess best thing you can do…any of us can do is be prepared and hope our plan works."

"And if it doesn't?"

"We'll think of a new one."

"Because that's what good does?" Regina questioned. "Never gives up?"

"Because that's what survivors do Regina and if there is anything you and I have in common besides Henry it's that we are both survivors."

Regina looked Emma in the eye before nodding. "I suppose we are."

Emma smiled. "I'll let you get back to what you were doing."

"And report back to Robin that I'm still in one piece?"

Emma chuckled. "That too, although I'm sure it won't be long until he feels the need to come and see for himself." Regina shook her head. "He loves you."

She smiled back at her. "I know." She watched as Emma walked back to the stairs and turned feeling oddly better then she had before she came. It may be strange but hearing good always wins just didn't help when it came to encouraging her because the fact was, whether or not she was working on the side of good, she didn't consider herself inherently "good." She would always fight against the darkness and it would always be there. But being a survivor…a smart survivor she could relate to. She'd had to learn to survive at an early age. It was something she knew how to do and if the worst happened and this plan didn't work, there would be another.

Because that's what she did. When one way was blocked, she found another.

XXXXXXXX

Emma had been right when she said it wouldn't be long before Robin showed up. She heard his steps about an hour later. She turned and smiled when she saw him looking rather sheepish.

"So you decided to come yourself this time?"

"I was a bit concerned you may be tiring of my face." He grinned.

She smiled softly at him. "I will never be tired of your face."

"Quite lucky for me." He smiled and stepped further into the vault. He pulled a bag from behind his back. "I did bring lunch."

She smiled not realizing until this moment just how hungry she was. "Something good I hope."

"Turkey and Swiss on a pretzel bun."

She walked towards him and leaned in for a kiss. "I knew there was a reason I was crazy about you."

He grinned and wrapped his arm around her waist holding her to him. "I missed you." He told her nuzzling his face into her neck.

"You just saw me this morning." She said even as her heart fluttered.

"And I missed you desperately." He placed another kiss to her lips. Then let her go so she could eat her lunch. "How was your visit with Emma?"

Regina raised an eyebrow. "Surprisingly helpful."

"Good." he told her and sat next to her pulling out his sandwich as he did. "Have you figured anything out about how to deal with Elphaba?"

Regina shook her head. "I'm going to have to immobilize her so I can get her heart back in then perform the enchantment to prevent her from removing it. There are a lot of spells that can do this, but many can be countered if the person it's being used on has magic. I think I may have found one though, I've just never used it before."

"Do you need to practice?" He asked grinning. "I could be your guinea pig."

"You would voluntarily let me immobilize you?"

Robin shrugged. "Why not? I trust you."

Regina grinned at him. "Did you not hear me say I've never used it?" she asked. "I could end up blowing you up."

"You won't" he argued. "You love my face to much."

"You're an idiot."

"Ah but I'm yours love." He leaned in and placed a kiss to her jaw as she chewed. "Let me help you."

She smiled. "You're sure?"

"I am."

Regina studied him for another moment before nodding. "Ok."

He grinned and stood. "Ok, so what do I do?"

"Umm," Regina flipped through the spell book and read over the incantation. When she felt confident she nodded. "Ok, come at me."

Robin furrowed his brow. "Come at you?" He asked.

"Well she'll hardly be standing still." she told him. "And likely she will be throwing magic my way."

Robin nodded. "Ok." he moved towards her and she murmured the incantation before waving her hand. He suddenly found himself rooted to where he was. He was unable to move his arms or legs. He grinned up at her "Quite impressive."

She smiled back at him. "What can I say? I'm the best."

He chuckled as she took a step forward and slid a hand down his face. He tried to move to pull her to him but was still frozen. He cleared his throat as Regina pressed her lips to his. "Umm love, how about letting me out of this spell so I might hold you."

"Hmm." she teased. "I'm afraid I didn't get that far." She ran her hands down his chest as he growled.

"Regina" he said it as if he were speaking to a petulant child.

She allowed her hands to run across his stomach and he let out a small whimper. She smiled and moved her hands back up to his shoulders and placed another kiss to his lips. He itched to touch her, needed to wrap his arms around her "I love you." She whispered before waving a hand and freeing him.

The moment he could move he yanked her to him and planted his lips firmly on hers. She sighed into his mouth and threaded her fingers through his hair. This…this gave her reason to fight, this gave her reason to hope, because despite her past, despite everything she had done here was this man who loved her anyway. He and her children gave her all the reason she needed to win this war with her sister.

She ran her hands back down his shirt and began to loosen buttons even as he gripped her ass and lifted her onto the table.

It seemed he would be a little late returning from lunch.

XXXXXXXX

Regina couldn't wipe the smile off her face as she finalized preparations for the spell she planned to use. She was finally beginning to feel confident. Finally beginning to think that she would be able to do this.

"Hello Regina." She heard from behind her and turned to find her sister staring back at her with a grin. She felt her confidence dwindle as she stared at her and panic wanted to leap into her throat. "I hear you've been looking for me."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok, so reviews have been really down the last few chapters (except for the asshole ones) so I would love to hear what you all are thinking.
> 
> There are about two chapters left to this one. Hope you all are still enjoying.


	19. Chapter 19

She swallowed hard hoping to hide the panic that wanted to leap at her throat, hoping her sister wouldn't be able to read the doubts that jumped into her mind…the ones that said she would fail, the ones that told her she wasn't good enough.

The thoughts that told her that her entire family would suffer because she wasn't strong enough to win.

"Elphaba." She allowed herself a confident smirk even though she felt anything but. "Or should I say sister?"

"Ah, so Glinda has told you then?" She asked as she sized Regina up and down. "I knew she wouldn't be able to keep quiet for long, she always did talk to much."

"She had a lot to say, including letting us in on your plan for Snow's baby…" She tilted her head. "It's a plan that I'm sorry to tell you isn't going to happen."

"You have a lot of confidence."

"One should have confidence in oneself."

"Tell me." Elphaba started. "Why would you want to save Snow's baby? Wouldn't letting me win be the perfect revenge?"

"I no longer want revenge."

The redhead gave a half laugh. "Really? On the good side now are you?"

Regina let out a sigh. "I'm on the side of peace. Snow and I have made ours and she's Henry's family."

"Ah yes…Henry." She took a step forward. "How is he?"

"I'm sure you already know."

"Yes…well…he's alive isn't he?"

Instead of answering Regina recited the incantation in her head and magic shot from her hands towards her sister who threw up her hands with her own spell. The magic clashed together like something out of a movie. For a moment Regina was reminded of Harry's last stand with Voldemort in Henry's favorite book series. Why was it in life threatening situations she always thought of the most ridiculous things?

The magic crackled against each other, hers purple, her sisters green.

"Did you think I wouldn't be ready for you? Did you think I wouldn't know your pathetic plans for me?"

Regina gritted her teeth and tried to push back against Elphaba's magic. "I had hoped."

"Face it Regina you're predictable." The redhead smiled at her as green began to overtake purple. "It's one of the consequences of working for the good side."

She took a deep breath and then another as she pushed back against the force of her sisters magic. "Maybe" she agreed. She could feel her magic weakening and fought to remember the things that made her strong. She took another breath as she recalled Henry's first word…the first steps he took into her arms. She felt herself grow stronger as she thought of Roland running to her when he exited his classroom and the way he would grin up at her asking for ice cream…another breath…she remembered Robin this very morning kissing her awake, this afternoon checking in on her just to be sure she was ok.

"But I'm afraid there was one thing you weren't counting on Elphaba."

"What's that dear sister?"

Regina looked her directly in the eye and smiled. "Love."

The moment she said the word white light burst from her hands and overtook the magic that had nearly beat her. She watched in shock as her sister became immobilized in front of her. "You didn't count on how much I love my family…to much to let you win this."

The redhead stared at her startled and infuriated. "You have no right to stop me from avenging my son!" She screamed at her "No right to take this from me!"

"You're wrong…when you hurt my family I have every right." Regina walked to the box in her vault that contained her sister's heart. She pulled it from the box and watched as it pulsated in her hand before looking back up at her sister. "And you will not hurt anyone I love again."

"Hurt anyone you love?" Elphaba said unbelieving, "My son is dead!" She screamed at her. "Yours is alive! You know nothing of suffering!"

"I know plenty." Regina disagreed and moved to stand in front of her sister. "And I know what it is to seek revenge. I know what it feels like to lose everything and I also know that removing your heart isn't the answer." She plunged her sisters heart back into her chest. She listened to her gasp and felt complete sympathy when she heard the wail of grief that followed. There had been a time when she'd removed her heart, when she'd been without her son and she knew there was no easing into the flood of emotions that followed it's return.

"He killed my son!" Her sister wailed at her. "My little boy! He killed him! He has to pay! He has to suffer!"

"I don't disagree that he has to pay for what he's done, but there is another way Elphaba. There has to be another way."

"Don't you think I would have found it?!" She shouted at her.

"There is another way, and I will help you, but stealing a baby isn't the answer." Regina told her.

"You killed a village to avenge the man you love!" She growled at her. "How can you stand there all high and mighty in your judgment?"

"Because I've been down that road…it didn't make me happy…it didn't change my pain." She placed both hands on her sister's shoulders. "It didn't bring Daniel back…it destroyed my soul and made me into a monster."

"You're happy now." The redhead pointed out defeated.

"Only because I learned to love again…to open my heart. Do you believe this is what your son would have wanted for you?"

"My son is dead. It hardly matters what he would want."

"I looked for revenge and did it in Daniel's name and in doing so I cast a shadow on his memory. I became the very thing he stood against. That wasn't what he would have wanted." Regina told her. "Stealing Snow's child is something that the Wizard would do." Regina told her. "It's the very thing that you and your son stood against."

"I can't live without him." A tear fell down her cheek. "I made so many mistakes, he will never know how much I love him."

"He knows." Regina answered. She held her hand over his sisters heart and it glowed golden just as it had over Henry's when she protected his heart from Pan. Then she took her sisters hands. "I'm going to bind your magic. It's only temporary, but I have to be sure you won't hurt anyone again."

"What difference does it make? I've already lost everything. I have nothing left."

"You do." Regina disagreed. "You have a friend in Glinda, a friend who loves you and wants you to be happy." She paused. "You have a family as well. You simply have to allow yourself to see it." White magic surrounded their hands and Elphaba stared at her with a heated gaze.

"Don't act as if you would ever be willing to accept me into your family Regina. We both know that would be a lie."

Regina studied her sister. "There was a time that I believed no one would ever accept me. I even feared my son would shut me out of his life…but I was wrong." A tear fell down her sisters cheek as she cast her eyes on the floor.

She turned from her then, there was nothing left to say. She needed time. Grief was a process and her sister wasn't likely to accept her help or anything she had to offer right away. She picked up her phone and dialed Robin.

For now, until they could talk to her, until they could make her see this wasn't the way her sister needed to be behind bars.

XXXXXXXX

He waited until Elphaba was in cuffs…waited until Emma and David led her from the vault.

When he'd gotten the call his heart had leaped to his throat. She had faced her without him even knowing she was in danger. So many things could have gone wrong. He could have lost her…again.

Would there ever be a time when her life wasn't in mortal danger?

It wasn't until they were alone again that he pulled her into a bone crushing hug and turned his face into her hair wanting to breathe her in to prove to himself that she was really still there with him.

"You're going to give me a complex." He told her.

She chuckled against his shoulder. "I think I already have." She teased. "You were already checking on me at least twice a day."

"I think I'm going to have to up that to five now."

"Maybe we should take a vacation." She told him.

"Yes, far away from Storybrook." He agreed. "Someplace where there will be no family members popping up to surprise us and trying to take you away from me."

"Hopefully we have reached our limit of surprise family for now."

He placed a kiss to her hair and pulled back to look at her. "I knew you could do it by the way."

"I didn't do it." She told him.

He shook his head. "I'm pretty sure she would tell a different story."

She smiled and shook her head. "I didn't do it." She said again. "You did."

He furrowed his brow. "Come again?"

"You did it…you and the boys. It was my love for the three of you that saved me."

He smiled and pushed her hair back from her face. "How's that?"

"I did light magic Robin." She pulled back and looked down at her hands. "I didn't even know I could. I never imagined that anything that pure could come from me."

He smiled at her. "You can do so much more then you give yourself credit for."

"But that's just it…I can't take credit for this one. It was you and the boys. Even when you weren't with me I could feel you. The love I felt for all of you gave me the strength to win."

He leaned in to place a gentle kiss to her lips. "Well, I'm certainly glad we could help, but don't let us take all the credit. You my lovely wife…"

"Not wife yet…"

"Soon to be wife" he corrected and damn would their lives ever stop being complicated? "Are perhaps the strongest person I know and I will be honored to be your husband, to spend everyday for the rest of my life waking up to your gorgeous face." He smiled. "How did I get so lucky?"

"You know…I guess in a weird way we have my sister to thank for that."

He groaned. "I'm not sure I'm ready to like her yet."

She smiled and leaned up to kiss him. "Robin?"

"Hmm?"

"Take me home."

"Your wish is my command my love."

XXXXXXXX

One Month Later

They hadn't taken into account the ruby slippers. The moment that Elphaba had entered the cell at the station she'd turned to Emma and told her to tell Regina she couldn't let it go, she couldn't forget and perhaps one day they would meet again…and that she was sorry. Before she or David had realized what was happening she'd clicked her heals together and disappeared. Back to Oz they assumed to attempt to seek her revenge another way.

Having her heart back had stopped her from taking the baby, but it hadn't changed her goal of making the Wizard pay for his crimes.

In the weeks that followed Regina had looked for a way to get to Oz, much to Robin's dismay. She couldn't say that she blamed him. He finally had his family together and safe and he wasn't overly excited at the idea of her putting herself in danger to help someone who didn't want to be helped.

But in the end he conceded that she was her sister and she had to at least try.

She hadn't found a way to get there yet, but she would. There had to be something, but it would take patience and persistence.

Those two things she had. In the meantime she meant to enjoy her family.

It was surreal to suddenly have everything she'd ever dreamed of. She couldn't help but fear when the other shoe would drop. This was Storybrook after all and things didn't seem to stay calm here for long.

But she was learning to take happiness as it came and to relish it while she had it in her grasp. Perhaps that was what made a truly happy person. To take those bits of happiness that life gives you and hold tight to them.

Roland was adjusting well. He was beginning to be less afraid of his former life and was even happy to talk about his time in the Enchanted Forest again. He was finally starting to believe that acknowledging that life would not steal the one he had here and now with both parents that he loved.

Henry was living mainly with she and Robin and spending weekends with Emma. He and Robin grew closer with every passing day. Henry had began to have a small amount of hero worship for her thief and it gave Regina a small thrill that finally there was someone in her life that her son was impressed with. After all the years of Snow talking of Lancelot or Emma telling him of her time in the Enchanted Forest and adventures with Mulan and Aurora finally it was Regina who had the person Henry was impressed with knowing.

As for she and Robin their wedding was fast approaching. She still couldn't quite believe that this man wanted to marry her and spend the rest of his life by her side. It was a wonderful giddy feeling and certainly something she'd never dreamed of having again.

Was this really her life?

She watched with a smile as they sat huddled around the TV with some video game and a championship battle between the three of them that she would never fully understand, but she supposed that was the price of being the only female in their little family.

They couldn't know what tomorrow would bring or what lay around the next corner of the road, but whatever lay ahead she knew with full confidence she wouldn't have to face it alone. She had her family who brought her more love then she had ever believed possible. Finally this house was full of love and laughter again, the way it had been when Henry was young.

Finally they were all home.

Fin

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Love you all! Hope you enjoyed. I may write a short companion piece to this at some point, but for now it is finished. Thank you all so much for sticking with me through this. I loved writing this story and I appreciate every last one of you that has read, reviewed, followed and favored. You are the best! Mwah!

**Author's Note:**

> Ok! So those of you who know me know that I am highly motivated by reviews! Please tell me what you think!
> 
> Most of you who have read previous stories know that I mostly just write great big balls of fluff. This story is going to have a lot more angst and a very slow burn as far as romance goes. Hope you enjoyed and please please tell me what you thought of the first chapter.
> 
> Come say hi on tumblr if you would like. Im thequeenstolemyheart there! :)


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